Justices Jo-Ann Barlow and Sandil Kissson last Tuesday threw out an application by the five men accused of murdering Berbice carpenter Faiyaz Narinedatt to have Magistrate Rabindranauth Singh complete the Preliminary Inquiry (PI) into the charge against them, even though he had recused himself from hearing the case.
The magistrate’s recusal came after he was cited by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) over allegations publicised in the press that “counsel” had been sending him text messages from the bar table and that he was not recording the evidence.
Justice Kissoon had earlier remarked that in the interest of justice, it was for this reason that the magistrate had to recuse himself.