PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad — For Chris, the creator behind the viral YouTube channel Chris Must List, Trinidad and Tobago remains one of his favourite places in the world. It is a sentiment that feels almost paradoxical, considering the nation’s legal system is currently attempting to send him to prison on charges of sedition.
In a recent, high-stakes update filmed from Asia, the Canadian journalist and documentarian laid bare the mechanics of a legal battle that looks less like a pursuit of justice and more like a war of attrition. Two years after being arrested, Chris finds himself entangled in a “Kafkaesque” nightmare of shifting charges, promoted prosecutors, and a charge of sedition that remains as vague today as it was the day he was handcuffed.
Throwing Mud at the Wall
The core of Chris’s defence rests on what he describes as a desperate attempt by Trinidadian authorities to find a crime—any crime—that would stick. “They’re throwing shit against the wall to see what stays,” Chris noted, detailing a timeline of legal flip-flopping.
Initially, he was charged with promoting gangs and engaging in gang-related activities. When those claims failed to hold water, the prosecution pivoted, suddenly accusing him of money laundering. In total, Chris was hit with five different charges before the state finally landed on sedition—a colonial-era law often criticised as a tool for suppressing free speech.
The pattern, Chris argues, is a calculated tactic. By constantly changing the accusations when they realise a claim has no bearing, the prosecution exploits the financial vulnerability of the accused. “They know the average man will drown in legal fees,” Chris said. The strategy is simple: beat the defendant into submission through the sheer stress and cost of a prolonged defence.
The “Seditious” Mystery
Perhaps the most baffling element of the case is the lack of evidence. Despite being two years into the process, the prosecution has yet to identify which specific video or segment of footage is considered seditious.
During his time in prison in Trinidad, Chris was never once asked to remove any of his uploaded content. This leads to a glaring logical inconsistency: if the government truly believed his videos were inciting mass hysteria or violence, why would they allow that content to remain live and accessible to the public for two years?
“If a video was considered seditious, wouldn’t they have at least requested its removal immediately?” Chris asked. This failure to act not only exposes a perceived level of corruption but also highlights a staggering incompetence that “looks bad to the world.”
A System in the Past
The latest development in the case involves a complete turnover of personnel. The original prosecutor has been promoted to a judge, leaving a new team to “re-learn” the case. While the previous prosecution claimed all discoveries and evidence had been submitted, the new team is pushing for a trial date—despite the continued lack of specific disclosure regarding the alleged crime.
Chris alleges that the system relies on the “fear of jail” to force innocent people to plead guilty. He recounted being offered a plea bargain: an apology and a guilty plea in exchange for his freedom. He refused. “I will not plead guilty to a crime I did not commit,” he stated, describing the pressure as an attempt to “beat you into submission.”
According to Chris, his only “crime” was documenting the truth. He spent his time in Trinidad participating in peaceful protests and marches, walking alongside mothers who had lost children to violence. Yet, the previous administration appeared deeply upset by his documentation of the country’s raw reality—a reality that the government seems more interested in hiding than fixing.
The Takeaway: A System on Trial
The saga of Chris Must List does more than just document one man’s legal troubles; it puts the Trinidad and Tobago legal system itself on trial. To an international audience, the proceedings appear blatantly corrupt and unlawful, as if the local authorities are operating in a bygone era where they could abuse power without global oversight.
There is an apparent lack of intelligence in the way the case has been handled—from the shifting charges to the inability to produce evidence. By using the law as a whim, the enforcement and court systems appear not only malicious but profoundly incompetent. Even high-ranking officials seem to know the case is hollow; Chris claims that Roger Alexander, a prominent security figure, once told him to “stay strong” because the state had “nothing on him.”
As the world watches, Trinidad and Tobago faces a choice: proceed with a trial that many see as a sham, or address the internal corruption that this case has so publicly unmasked.
See the previous article about Chris Must List here.
“Kafkaesque” /kafkə(r)ˈɛsk/
characteristic or reminiscent of Franz Kafka’s fictional world, especially with reference to his portrayal of oppressively complex and seemingly illogical bureaucracy.
Watch Chris Must List’s video here:
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