Albert DeFreitas was not required to plead to two counts of the indictable charge of attempted murder on Monday when he appeared before Magistrate Priya Beharry at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court.
DeFreitas of 100 Leopold Street, Werk-en-Rust, was charged with two counts of attempted murder and two counts of discharging a loaded firearm.
It is alleged that on October 25 at River View, Ruimveldt, DeFreitas, with the intent to commit murder, discharged a loaded firearm at Cheryl Marks. He also allegedly with intent to commit murder discharged a loaded firearm at Mark Fernandes.
Prosecutor in the case, Inspector Stephen Telford, related to the court that DeFreitas and Marks who were in a relationship had spent a social evening at a bar on the night in question.
He said that the defendant on seeing Marks in a conversation with Fernandes lashed her with an unidentified object then got into his car and drove away.
He later returned with a gun and shot at Marks and Fernandes who fled for their lives.
The virtual complainants (VCs) were injured and hospitalised and later released. Telford objected to bail on the grounds of the seriousness of the crime.
He said that it was a clear case of intent since the defendant went away and returned and injured the VCs. Telford said further that should bail be granted, the defendant would likely tamper with the witnesses and flee the jurisdiction.
However, DeFreitas’ attorney, Nigel Hughes in his bail application for his client said he was the father of five and argued that the court did not have the time to afford his client a reasonable trial date and so his client may be in jail for a lengthy period. He also pointed out that it was a month after the incident that charges were brought against his client.
Addressing the grounds of the prosecutor’s bail rejection, Hughes said that his client made no attempt, even a month after, to tamper with the witnesses or flee the jurisdiction and he was perplexed as to why he would do so now.
Magistrate Beharry subsequently refused bail. The matter is to proceed on November 30.