http://guardian.co.tt/news/cctv-footage ... d6f5fc912fCCTV footage has helped to exonerate two men, who were accused of murdering two friends in east Port-of-Spain, almost a decade ago.
It took a 12-member jury before Justice Devan Rampersad, half an hour or one-eighth of the time allotted to them for deliberate, to return with unanimous not guilty verdicts for Robert “Paranoid” LeaRooster and Michael Les Pierre.
However, LeaRooster and Les Pierre did not walk out of the Hall of Justice in Port-of-Spain to greet their relatives as they were remanded back into custody on a shooting charge, arising out of the same incident, that was separated from the murder charges by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) at the trial.
Their relatives were frustrated by the situation when they spoke briefly with Guardian Media.
“After 10 years, now this. They feel spending another weekend in there (remand) is nothing,” LeaRooster’s female relative said.
The duo’s attorneys were expected to file a writ of habeas corpus, late yesterday evening, to challenge the issue and attempt to secure the duo’s freedom over the weekend as they claim that the charge should have been discontinued by the DPP’s Office.
LeaRooster and Les Pierre were charged with murdering Travis “Wet Money” Breedy, 29 of Duncan Street, Port-of-Spain, and Garnet Lake, 26, of Diego Martin, on September 21, 2009.
According to the evidence presented in the trial, Breedy and Lake were liming at the corner of Prince and George Streets in Port-of-Spain when they were attacked by two gunmen.
Breedy was shot first and when he fell to the ground, one gunman stood over him and shot him several times. Lake attempted to run away but was chased by the second gunman, who shot him several times. He was taken to hospital but died while receiving treatment. The State’s main witness was walking in the area when the shooting occurred.
However, his evidence in the case was contradicted by CCTV footage of the shooting, which was also shown to the jury.
While the witness claimed that the gunman who attacked LeaRooster was wearing a black sweater, the footage showed that he was wearing a white vest. Although the witness claimed that he was a short distance away when the two men were attacked and saw their attackers, he was almost 75 metres away.
The witness also said the gunmen came from the opposite direction which was shown in the footage. The witness also claimed that the incident lasted 20-30 seconds when the footage showed that it was, in fact, closer to 12 seconds.
LeaRooster was represented by Wayne Sturge and Danielle Rampersad, while Criston J Williams represented Les Pierre. Sabrina Dougdeen-Jaglal prosecuted.
