'Split Peas' freed of 2009 Diego Martin murder

A Diego Martin man has been cleared of a 2009 murder on Covigne Road by a High Court judge.

Sylvan Thomas, also known as “Split Peas,” was found not guilty of murder after a judge ruled the evidence against him was too weak and unreliable.

Thomas had been on trial for the 2009 killing of Akiel Bernard, who was shot while sitting in his car on Covigne Road, Diego Martin. The trial, which began June 2, was heard by Justice Trevor Jones without a jury. Thomas was represented by attorneys John Heath, SC, Karunaa Bisramsingh, and Sheldon Mycoo.

The prosecution claimed that around 7.30 am on January 30, 2009, Thomas shot Bernard while he sat in his parked car. Their case depended solely on two eyewitnesses who said they recognised Thomas as the shooter.

One of the witnesses, who was 13 at the time, said he was in the front seat of the car and saw Thomas approach and fire through the driver’s side window. The other witness said she saw the shooting from her bedroom window, about 116 feet away.

Both witnesses said they knew Thomas before and recognised him, but Thomas’s attorneys pointed to glaring differences in their evidence of conflicting details about his clothes, hairstyle, and whether he wore a hat. Their accounts of the weather and lighting that morning also didn’t match, the attorneys argued.

Thomas’ lawyers further contended that the eyewitnesses’ statements were full of contradictions and could not be trusted. The judge agreed, saying the identification evidence was too weak, especially after 16 years.

He also said there were several deficiencies in the evidence, and was also critical of an investigative officer who took statements from the witnesses together.