Former Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Private, Abiola Jacobs was yesterday committed to stand trial in the High Court for the murder of Donna Taylor, the mother of her ex-boyfriend.
Chief Magistrate Priya Sewnarine-Beharry announced that a prima facie case had been made out against Jacobs at the conclusion of the preliminary inquiry (PI) into the charge against her at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court One.
A tearful Jacobs shook her head periodically as if in disbelief at the ruling. In an unsworn statement from the prisoners’ dock,
she told the court that she was innocent of the charge levelled against her. “Ma’am, I’m innocent of this charge. I was not present the night of the murder. Samantha is lying on me,” she said.
Meanwhile, her attorney Adrian Thompson told the court that the defence would reserve its witnesses for the High Court.
Jacobs’ mother was moved to tears after the decision was handed down as were other relatives and friends who were present at yesterday’s hearing. The woman and her daughter, both in tears, hugged each other at the bottom of the stairs after the matter ended.
Relatives of the deceased meanwhile had no reaction or outward expressions to the court’s ruling. They stood around contemplating their next move as the husband of the deceased spoke briefly with Prosecutor Michael Grant.
Jacobs was charged in February with the January 31 murder of Taylor, who was discovered in the backyard of her 1617 Public Road, Agricola home with her throat slit in the aftermath of an attack at her home. British national Samantha Sabat, who had been a house guest of Taylor, was found unconscious in the front yard. According to reports, Sabat had suffered a broken arm and head injuries after jumping from the verandah of the Agricola home in a bid to escape the fatal attack.
