Bottled water business owner appeals detention in Trinidad over alleged PM assassination plot

July 7 - Business executive Dominic Hadeed and his wife Genevieve filed an appeal on Tuesday against their detention over an alleged plot to assassinate top members of the Trinidadian government, including Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar.

Hadeed, who owns the Trinidad and Tobago-based Blue Waters bottled water supplier, is accused of conspiring to assassinate the prime minister, attorney general and other members of government.

He and his wife have denied the accusations and argued their detention constituted political retaliation against members of an ethnic minority believed to support the opposition.

Hadeed is of Syrian origin and belongs to the Caribbean island nation's Syrian-Lebanese community, which the appeal argues was derogatorily referred to by authorities as the "1%."

Hadeed and his wife were detained in late June under an emergency powers provision and have been transferred to the Port of Spain Remand Yard and the Maximum Security Women's Prison, respectively, pending a hearing on July 27. REUTERS