Since its inception in February 2021, the Hunters’ Search and Rescue Team has helped to bring closure to many families by finding 98 people and 30 bodies.
Founded by team captain Vallence Rambharat, 58, of Rio Claro, the group’s activities include land, river and sea searches for drownings, murder victims, suicides, natural deaths and missing persons.
Rambharat explained, “Sometimes persons wilfully run away from home. We engage the families and try our best to get the persons back to those families.
"We are the only organisation the embraces searching for all types of missing persons. Our mission is to work with law enforcement to assist families and citizens to achieve closure when their loved ones go missing.”
He told Sunday Newsday the formation of the group began when he learned the police were searching the forests of Sangre Grande for 22-year-old Andrea Bharatt, who went missing on January 29 after getting in a taxi in Arima.
He called then commissioner of police Gary Griffith to offer the hunters' assistance. Griffith agreed, so Rambharat called some of his hunting friends together to help the police.
The police found Bharatt’s body on February 4 in the Heights of Aripo.
But two days later, Rambharat got a call from deputy CoP Joanne Archie asking the 17 hunters to be a part of a police operation called Aripo Sweep to look for any more bodies in the area.
“Coming out of the Andrea Bharatt search, the members were distraught and heartbroken. And after that operation, the hunters who were gathered decided they wanted to continue. So it was out of these emotions that the organisation was born.”
[caption id="attachment_958138" align="alignnone" width="683"] The Hunters Search and Rescue team heads into the forests of the Heights of Aripo, Arima. - ROGER JACOB[/caption]
The Hunters’ Search and Rescue Team now has 27 members from all over TT. It includes four teams – a three-member team in Tobago headed by Kester Jerry, a seven-member team in north Trinidad headed by Shamsudeen Ayube, a four-member team in central led by Ramnauth Ramcharitar, and a 13-member team in south led by Johnny Maharaj.
It has worked with several police teams, including the Anti-kidnapping and Special Investigations units, the Inter-Agency Task Force, National Operational Task Force, Coastal and Riverine Unit, all police stations, the Coast Guard and the Fire Services.
In 2021, the group carried out 38 search and rescue operations. They found 14 people alive and 16 bodies. Eight people were not found.
This year, up to June 1, they have been involved in 147 missing-persons cases. Eighty-four people were found alive, 14 were found dead and 49 have not been found.
Rambharat said people usually ask for help through the group’s Facebook page. They receive information there, or people use the contact number on the page to WhatsApp message or call the group.
Most of the members are retired, own businesses or are self-employed. As a result, at any given time, the group could have 11-14 people involved in a search,
