Ruimveldt man who beat ex-father-in-law to death goes on trial on Monday

A man who allegedly murdered his former father-in-law during a scuffle on June 21, 2020 will go on trial for the capital offence next Monday, December 5, before Justice Simone Morris-Ramlall and a 12-member jury in the Demerara High Court.
Upon his arraignment on Thursday, Zaheer Hussein, formerly of Riverview, Ruimveldt, Georgetown, pleaded not guilty to the charge, which alleges that he murdered 54-year-old Alexi Gomes, called “Dino”, on Father’s Day in 2020. A 12-member mixed jury was thereafter empanelled to hear the case.
Hussein is being represented by Attorneys-at-Law Dexter Smartt, Dexter Todd and Jevon Cox, while Attorneys-at-Law Muntaz Ali, Taneisha Saygon and Simran Gajraj are prosecuting the case.

It has been reported that, on the day in question, Gomes had left his residence at Lot 6 Riverview, Ruimveldt to go buy beer at one of the community’s shops when he saw his grandson in the company of his former son-in-law, and he stretched out his arms to hug the child, but Hussein reportedly got angry and punched him. In the ensuing scuffle between the two men, Hussein picked up a piece of wood and dealt Gomes several lashes to the head.
Gomes fell down unconscious, but was picked up by a relative and taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPHC), where he was treated before being transferred to a private hospital, where he died. A post-mortem examination performed on the body of Gomes revealed that he died as a result of blunt trauma to the head.
At the time of his demise, Gomes had been visiting from New York, United States of America (USA), and had been prevented from returning there because international airports had been closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.