A police detective yesterday testified that accused Warren McKenzie confessed to being one of the men who robbed and brutalised Land Court Judge Nicola Pierre and her family.
Detective Corporal Chetram Sewsankar told trial magistrate Zamilla Ally-Seepaul at the Sparendaam Magistrate’s Court that McKenzie, under questioning, implicated himself in the July 9, 2015 attack but refused to sign a statement to that effect.
McKenzie is on trial along with Nicholas Narine, Premnauth Samaroo, Daymeion Millington, and Anthony David for the robbery of Justice Pierre and her husband, Mohamed Chan, as well as shooting at security guard Ron Peters.
According to Sewsankar, he met McKenzie at Brickdam Police Station. McKenzie, who had been shot, was lying in a stretcher in the Enquiries Office at the police station. McKenzie had been shot in a shootout between the SWAT team and his alleged co-accused at a house at Craig, East Bank Demerara on July 14 last year.
The detective said they spoke about the robbery of the judge in the presence of a Sergeant and he told McKenzie that he received information that he, in company of others, robbed the judge and her husband of a quantity of gold jewellery and other items.
Sewsankar added that after he told McKenzie of the accusation and then cautioned him, the man replied, “…Is wat I put myself in here, boy… if I did only know that the lady was a judge they couldn’t got me on that wuk….”
Sewsankar told the court he asked McKenzie if he wished to make a written statement but the man replied, “No. I ain’t signing nothing to nothing.”
Sewsankar added that he had also told McKenzie that he had information that he, while in the company of others, discharged a loaded firearm at the security guard with intent to maim and disfigure or cause grievous bodily harm to him. He said he then cautioned McKenzie, who replied, “Nah me. Me ain’t get no gun fuh duh wuk.”
He added that McKenzie once more refused to make any statement and sign to it. The detective said that he then made an entry in the station diary. He maintained that neither he nor any of the officers at the police station threatened or used force or promised anything to McKenzie in the process of getting his responses.
McKenzie, who is unrepresented at the trial, was not pleased with the detective’s testimony and during his cross-examination he told the court that he never told Sewsankar anything. He said the detective asked him if he knew why he was at the station and in reply he told him that he had no knowledge about why he was at the station. He further said that the detective told him that he was in custody for a felony charge and a gun and ammunition charge for an offence that occurred on the East Bank of Demerara.
The accused also said that he was asked by the detective to sign to a gun charge but he refused.
Detective Sewsankar later told the court that McKenzie was lying and he had never said or did anything contrary to his testimony.
Meanwhile, Assistant Superintendent Simeon Reid took the stand once again and he was crossed-examined by defence attorney Adrian Thompson about the identification parade he conducted for Justice Pierre via Skype, while she had been in Canada.
The attorney pointed out that Justice Pierre could not have identified his client, Narine, if she didn’t ask Reid to ask Narine a question so that she could hear his voice. The attorney questioned if the judge had identified Narine after hearing his voice. Reid then told the court he would be unable to say whether the judge wanted to hear Narine’s voice just for clarification. Reid also told the court that it was the first time he conducted an identification parade via Skype.
The trial has been adjourned until tomorrow.
