Rayon Carter now faces a retrial after a jury was unable to arrive at a verdict on the indictment levelled against him for the 2018 murder of former Kane-ville machine operator, Ishwar Ramanah.
Following hours of deliberations yesterday afternoon, the forewoman informed the court that the panel was deadlocked in a proportion of 10 to 2 with no possibility of arriving at a consensus.
In the circimstances, Justice Navindra Singh declared a mistrial and explained to a visibly distressed Carter that the jury was hung and he would therefore have to remain on remand for a new trial.
Carter is alleged to have fatally shot Ramanah during a robbery, after invading the man’s home.
The charge against him is that on January 13th, 2018, at Kaneville, East Bank Demerara (EBD) he murdered Ramanah during the course or furtherance of a robbery.
Carter was represented by defence attorney Rachael Bakker; while the state’s case was presented by Prosecutor Tiffini Lyken.
Ramanah, called ‘Jack,’ who resided at Lot 624 Macaw Drive, Kaneville, EBD, was shot in the abdomen during a robbery, which occurred around 12.10 am on December 13th, 2017 at his home.
Afterward, he was rushed to the East Bank Demerara Regional Hospital, where he was treated before being transferred to the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPH).
He underwent surgery and was admitted as a patient of the Intensive Care Unit of the GPH, where he eventually succumbed exactly one month later—on January 13th, 2018.
The attack was reportedly carried out by two gunmen, who invaded Ramanah’s home and robbed him of a $40,000 gold chain.
