Businessman charged with wife’s murder wanted to see family crumble, witness testifies

The sister of slain businesswoman Simone Campbell-Collymore this morning testified that she witnessed her sister's husband threatening that he was not going to stop until the family fell apart during a major fight that the couple had over cheating accusation.

"He said he is going to ensure that this family crumble," the witness recalled during her evidence in chief in the Home Circuit Court.

The court heard that Omar Collymore went berserk during the quarrel by smashing his wife two iPhones, threw items and tried to destroy the windows of his wife's Mercedes Benz motor car.

The sister also testified that Collymore, who was three times the size of his small wife, used his lower arm to pin her against the wall when she tried to reach for his cell phone.

At that point, her sister was seeing scratching at her husband's neck and face to defend herself, the woman testified, before she intervened.

According to the sister, shortly before the incident in September 2017, Campbell-Collymore came to her crying while replaying a recording of two women speaking.

The sister, however, was not allowed to share details of the conversation.

The witness said her sister then started packing up her husband's clothing.

On Omar Collymore's arrival, he saw her crying and enquired why and she told him "Why don't you go ask Val."

The sister said Collymore, after putting down the children who he had just taken home, then "literally went crazy."

"He began throwing anything he could reach," she said.

She also recalled Collymore ripping a 70-inch television from the wall and shattering the glass in his rage.

While cursing and using expletives, she said Collymore told his wife, "You think you can embarrass me, you think this is how it is going to go?"

The sister also recalled Campbell-Collymore cursing her husband and telling him that their relationship was over and that he could go and be with all the women he wants to be with.

Continuing her testimony, the witness said her husband tried more than once to get Collymore to leave the premises and to calm him down.

Eventually, she said they went downstairs in the driveway where she saw Collymore going around the car pounding at the windows, still ranting and raging.

The witness said she told him to stop acting like a lunatic but when he realised that he could not hit out the windows he went into his car to run over his wife's benz motor car.

Realising his intention, the sister said she went to stand in front of his car, and he screamed at her to move but she refused.

She said he put the car in drive and her husband intervened and grabbed his keys away.

After pleading with him and telling him to stop the foolishness, she said her husband got him to leave.

Following that incident, she said Collymore did not return to the family home where he was living.

She said shortly after her sister moved out of the family home she and her children went to live at Collymore's apartment after he invited her.

Following the incident, the witness said her sister invited the entire family to a counselling session but that when her father asked Collymore to explain what his threat meant he refused to answer.

Asked to describe her relationship with Collymore, the witness said they had a very close relationship as the family was very close knit and did everything together.

Under cross-examination from Collymore's lawyer, Diane Jobson, she indicated that although she felt threatened by Collymore during the commotion, she did not think that he was going to run her over with his car.

She also testified under cross-examination that in the following December, she was at a restaurant picking up lunch when she saw Collymore with a woman.

When she enquired why he was there, he told her it was for a business meeting.

The witness said she asked if his wife knew he was meeting with the woman whom he was having an affair before she left.

According to her, she eventually told her sister about it later in the month.

Collymore and his three co-defendants, Michael Adams, Dewayne Pink and Shaquile Edwards, are being tried for the woman's and her taxi driver Winston Watson.

The defendants are being tried for two counts each of murder and a count of conspiracy.

The 32-year-old businesswoman and 36-year-old taxi operator were gunned down on Stanley Terrace in Red Hills, St Andrew, on January 2, 2018.

Collymore is alleged to have orchestrated his wife's murder and was home at the time of the murder.

The victims were shot and killed when they arrived at the gate of the apartment building where Campbell-Collymore lived.

They were shot by two pillion passengers who were travelling on motorbikes.

- Tanesha Mundle

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