Six cops waive chance to testify in own defence at murder trial

All six police officers charged with the murders of three Moruga friends in 2011 have exercised their right to remain silent at their trial.

They said they were doing so on the advice of their attorneys Israel Khan, SC, and Ulric Skerrit. Only one said he was calling witnesses in his defence.

Before the court are Sgt Khemraj Sahadeo, along with PCs Ronald Riveiro, Glenn Singh, Roger Nicholas, Safraz Juman and Antonio Ramadhin.

The are charged with the murders of Abigail Johnson, 23, Alana Duncan, 28, and Kerron “Fingers” Eccles on July 22, 2011.

On Friday, the choice to testify or call witnesses was put to the six after prosecutors closed their case against them.

There are no more witnesses to testify for the State and on Friday, a certificate of analysis of DNA testing on a latex glove and the deposition of civilian witness Andrel Richards were tendered into evidence.

The DNA test was inconclusive. The “DNA recovered was insufficient to yield a DNA profile,” the report said.

Richards was in a car ahead of the white Nissan B15 car the team of police officers shot at in Barrackpore on July 22, 2011. In the B15 were Johnson, Duncan and Eccles.

In Richards’ car was Duncan’s common-law husband, Shumba James, whom the officers were targeting, as he was allegedly wanted for two murders.

It is the State’s case that the three were unintended targets and James had borrowed a white B15 and took Duncan to the St Mary’s police post, where he had to report three times a week as part of his bail conditions.

According to Richards’ testimony at the Princes Town magistrates court, he knew the trio. That evening, after work, he met them and James at the Little Havana bar. He and other friends decided to go to a bar that had just opened in Barrackpore.

James and the other three followed in a white B15. They drove to another bar where they met another friend, Marvin Figaro, who decided to join them.

Johnson, the driver, Duncan and Eccles followed in the B15 while Richards, James and Figaro were in the former’s silver Toyota Altis.

He said when they got to Gunnes Trace in Barrackpore, he saw two police vehicles parked in a reversed position at an auto parts place. He described it as being “like a roadblock.” Richards said he slowed down but was not stopped.

He saw a police officer standing at the side of one of the vehicles, holding a shotgun, and heard someone say, “Don’t move.” Richards then said he heard consecutive gunshots and drove off.

“Sumba said. 'Is me they trying to kill dey.' He was crying.”

Richards said James called “Shuggie” to call an ambulance and said he had just gone to “sign the book” and did not know why they were trying to kill him.

In that testimony at the preliminary inquiry into the murders, Richards claimed only the first two pages of a six-page statement he gave to the police days after the incident were “the truth.”

“I was afraid for my life and my family life.”

In cross-examination by Skerritt in 2013, Richards admitted he lied in his first statement. He also said he was asked to give another statement by then DCP Raymond Craig, the lead investigator in the murders who charged the officers.

That second statement was given at the St Mary’s Government School and Richards said when Craig approached him, he told him he had lied in the statement about what took place.

He said the “part up to Rochard Douglas Road” was correct. He also said when Craig approached him, he recognised one of the officers on his team as a former schoolmate, then he added, “I don’t have to be afraid anymore.”

In subsequent testimony, Richards said when he saw the police officers, he was not stopped and heard James say, “Like they stop the vehicle…Like it have a shootout. Is me they looking for.”

He drove to Princes Town, dropped off James at his spiritual father’s house, and dropped off Figaro and gave him money to get home.

Richards said that was the “first and last time” he had limed with James.

It was after his deposition was read out to the jury that Peterson announced, “That is the evidence for the State.”

Justice Brown-Antoine explained the next step to the jury, telling them the accused were going to be given an opportunity to present a defence.

“They don’t have to prove anything. It is the State to prove they are guilty. It is their right to remain silent.”

With all six choosing to remain silent, only Ramadhin opted to call witnesses. His first witness was Cpl Sterling Lee, of the St Clair Police Station, who in April, said he received two statements from WPC Nicole Clement. Both statements were read to the jury and tendered into evidence.

Clement was also charged with the murders, but those charges were discontinued after she was given immunity to testify against her six colleagues.

On Monday, the judge deemed her a hostile witness and for four days she refused to give evidence at the trial. Testimony she gave at the preliminary inquiry in 2013 was read to the jury as her evidence in chief.

In her evidence at the inquiry, she claimed two of the three Moruga friends – a man and woman – initially survived the “gunfight” at Barrackpore and were taken to a lonely road off the M2 Ring Road, Woodland, where they were executed.

Her evidence at the inquiry also detailed steps her colleagues allegedly took to cover up the killings and her signing a report prepared by two of them, which she testified was false.

Clement testified then that she did so because it was “normal police culture,” where “everyone sticks together and writes the same report…One squad, one song,”

In her alleged two statements in April, she claimed she was the mastermind behind the killings and threatened her colleagues at gunpoint. She also claimed she gave the orders to take Duncan and Eccles to a dirt road off the M2 Ring Road and “finish them,” and everything her colleagues did was under duress.

She allegedly took full responsibility for the killings and said she wanted to clear her colleagues’ names, since it was “unfair” they have been in prison for more than a decade. She also claimed she wanted to prove she was “hard-hearted” enough to be on the robbery squad, but “ruined” the lives of many.”

The other statement was to tell the Director of Public Prosecutions she will “no longer be giving evidence…Please be guided accordingly.”

The trial has been adjourned to Tuesday.

Also on Friday, one of the jurors on the main panel was discharged and replaced by an alternate juror.

The trial began on July 11.

Not all the evidence was in the form of testimony from witnesses. Some was in the form of certificates, statements and video footage.