Dana accused want magistrate to step down

TWO of the ten men charged with the murder of Senior Counsel Dana Seetahal are asking for the magistrate presiding over the proceedings to step down from the case.

The application for Senior Magistrate Indrani Cedeno to recuse herself from the case on the ground of apparent bias was made by attorney Criston J Williams who is representing alleged gang leader Rajaee Ali and Earl Richards.

This is the second time a magistrate presiding over the inquiry has been asked to step down.

Former chief magistrate Marcia Ayers-Caesar in January 2016, also stepped down after a similar application was made by the defence and supported by the prosecution. She agreed and was replaced by Cedeno.

Her decision to step down came after she was informed by the then Criminal Gang and Intelligence Unit (CGIU), which was instrumental in the investigation in Seetahal’s murder, that there was a threat against her life. Security was also increased for Ayers-Caesar and officers of the CGIU were briefly assigned to her security detail.

Ayers-Caesar also recused herself from Ali’s separate case for conspiring to murder radio announcer Kevaughn “Lurbz” Savory in late 2014 on the same ground.