Magistrate Fazil Azeez yesterday discharged the case against Rabindra Rooplall, who had been charged with the murder of a taxi-driver in 2002, after he found that there was no evidence against him.
Rooplall of West Ruimveldt, Parsram Tirbeni of Independence Street, La Grange, West Bank Demerara (WBD) and Vijay Persaud of Dowding Street, Kitty had been charged with the murder of Motilall Lall.
They were accused of killing Lall at Studley Park, Canal Number One, WBD on August 30, 2002. Lall, who was a driver with Luxury Cabs at the time of his death, was chopped to death at a Studley Park, Canal Number One yard after his car had been hijacked.
However, the case against Persaud was discharged in November last year after the magistrate found that there was no evidence linking him to the murder.
Yesterday, the magistrate ruled that there was no evidence against Rooplall and released him.
The prosecution closed its case against Tirbeni yesterday also and Defence Counsel Randolph Kirton is expected to make no-case submissions on February 13.
The trio had first appeared in court on September 17, 2002 charged with Lall’s murder and were remanded to prison by then acting chief magistrate Juliet Holder-Allen, who transferred the matter to the Wales Magistrate’s Court.
At Wales, Magistrate Melissa Robertson-Ogle discharged the case against the trio in 2004. However, two weeks later they were re-arrested and once again charged for the murder. The late magistrate Oscar Parvatan began a Preliminary Inquiry (PI) into the matter, but that ended with his death. Magistrate Fazil Azeez then began conducting a third PI.
