Search on for missing ballistic evidence as trial continues for cops in triple killing

A search is now under way at the police central store to locate key ballistic evidence collected in the January 2013 fatal shooting of three men along Acadia Drive, St Andrew.

The revelation came yesterday in the Home Circuit Court during the murder trial of six policemen charged in connection with the incident, as a detective corporal who was an investigator in the case resumed his testimony before the seven-member jury.

Sergeant Simroy Mott, Corporal Donovan Fullerton, and constables Andrew Smith, Sheldon Richards, Orandy Rose and Richard Lynch are facing murder charges in the January 12, 2013 deaths of Matthew Lee, Mark Allen and Ucliffe Dyer.

The police witness, who was a detective constable at the time and attached to the Criminal Investigation Branch (CIB) at the Constant Spring Police Station, had previously testified that he collected two firearms from Mott at the scene and handed them over to another sergeant for delivery to the laboratory for testing. The firearms were an Acrus 9mm pistol and a Mac-10 submachine gun, both loaded with live rounds.

He also told the court that he was shown an envelope containing 23 5.56mm spent casings and nine 9mm casings, which were recovered from the scene before being forwarded to the laboratory.

However, when asked yesterday by lead prosecutor Kathy-Ann Pyke about the whereabouts of the items, the witness replied, “I can’t say definitively.”

He noted that the items should be at the central store, adding that he had provided the central store with the relevant information and that a search is under way. He said that once the items are found, they will be brought to court.

SAME ACCOUNT

Continuing his testimony from Thursday, he told the court that all six accused policemen gave him the same account when he saw them at the station following the incident. Their account was that four men in a car had engaged them in a shootout, but that one had escaped.

At the same time, he said he did not notice any of the lawmen with injuries, nor did he see any damage to the service vehicle consistent with gunshots. He described the interaction with the six men as informal, explaining that it was not a formal, recorded interview and that he did not record the time of the discussions. When asked if he had received a description of the fourth man, he said it was “a fleeting description”.

The witness also acknowledged that no fingerprint examination was carried out on the firearms, explaining that the matter “did not come up” during the investigation, although he confirmed that the weapons were of interest to the case. He also said he could not recall where at the scene the guns were recovered, noting that the policemen did not point out a specific area to him.

In addition, the detective said he attended the funeral home, where the bodies of the three men were identified by police as the individuals involved in the alleged shootout. He observed that all three had what appeared to be gunshot wounds to their upper bodies. He also attended post-mortem examinations for Allen and Dyer but did not participate in the procedures, explaining that his presence was in line with standard police protocol as he had already handed over the investigation to the Independent Commission of Investigations (INDECOM).

During his testimony, the detective corporal said he did not notice any personal items in the vicinity of the crime scene, nor could he recall seeing any motor vehicle documents in the car the men were travelling in.

Minister of Agriculture Floyd Green, one of the key eyewitnesses, testified that he had seen one of the men with what appeared to be car papers in his hands during the incident.

The court also heard from the witness that high-powered weapons were taken from the six policemen, tagged, and their serial numbers recorded in the station diary. He added that the guns were then sent for testing at the laboratory.

The trial continues before Justice Sonia Bertram Linton on Monday.

tanesha.mundle@gleanerjm.com