…admitted to robbery-murder involvement under caution – Police witness
Following the conclusion of a one-week voir dire (trial within a trial), the contents of the caution statement of Phillip “Shoe Lace” Paul were disclosed to a 12-member jury at the High Court during the main trial before Justice Sandil Kissoon. Police Detective Sergeant Kevin Martin testified that the accused admitted to being involving in the crime when he was in custody at the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) at Eve Leary. Georgetown in January 2013.
Paul has, however, denied the December 2012 killing of Kamal Ramsahoye for which he is facing trial at the Demerara High Court. Prosecutors Lisa Cave and Orinthia Schmidt are appearing on behalf of the State while Attorney Brandon De Santos is defending the murder accused. During a recent hearing, Sergeant Martin noted that after the accused was taken into custody, he elected Inspector Adams to pen his story detailing the events that transpired leading to Ramsahoye’s demise.
According to the Policeman’s evidence, Paul said on Saturday night he went to the line top where he saw he friend, “Tall Man” who invited him to go to a house. Afterward, his friend scaled the fence and barbed wire and “jumped in the yard”. The Policeman related that the accused said that he and his friend saw a man inside of the house and they went inside.
Paul reportedly said: “I hold on to he and Tall Man pull out a knife. I tell he don’t bore de man, but he say de man see we face. Tall Man began stabbing de man in he heart and belly. The man fall down and Tall Man tek de money out of de draw and we went upstairs. They had some money pon de table; Tall Man pick it up, we jump de fence, went through the street and went on de line top.”
The jury also heard that the accused was given some $60,000 before the duo parted company. Sergeant Martin disclosed that Paul looked over his statement and appeared to be reading it and purportedly understood the contents of his caution statement.
The Police contend that the defendant gave his statement out of his own free will and even said that he did not want his mother present at the time surrounding the interrogation as she “gan fall down”. Martin, who was a witness to the said caution statement, identified the document in court.
The particulars of the charge allege that Paul murdered the man between December 8 and 9, 2012, during the course or furtherance of a robbery. Reports from 2012 had stated that Ramsahoye was found dead at his residence. A post-mortem examination had revealed that he died from haemorrhaging and shock due to massive blood loss.
