JUSTICE William Ramlal on Friday accepted a no-case submission in the West Coast Demerara murder case, and directed the mixed jury to return formal verdicts of not guilty of murder and manslaughter in relation to accused Hafeez Khan.
Judge Ramlal had agreed with defence counsel Mr. Khemraj Ramjattan that the prosecution had failed to make out a case against the accused for the murder of Anthony Waldron, alias ‘Pumpkin’, allegedly committed with a scissors on February 22, 2004.
The prosecution’s case, conducted  by lawyer Miss Prithima Kissoon of the DPP Chambers, was to the effect that following an all-night party at which alcohol was imbibed, and the merry making continued into the next day at a West Coast Demerara home, a ‘fight’ between the accused and Pumpkin broke out, and   the latter was said to be stabbed to death in the neck with a pair of scissors.
There was evidence that prior to the main incident,  the accused was seen brandishing  a knife in the face of Pumpkin.
But under cross-examination by Mr. Ramjattan, prosecution witness Rondon White  described the affair about  knife-brandishing as horse play which, he said, both men used to be engaged in from time to time.`
In his no-case submission, Mr. Ramjattan drew the court’s attention to the fact that no one saw the accused  inflict the injury with a scissors, and that no finger print nor forensic evidence  was introduced  to support the contention that the scissors was the weapon used.
Defence Counsel had also contended that the prosecution had failed to introduce evidence to show  that there was the possibility that the wound could have been caused  by accident or accidentally inflicted.
And, he noted that the prosecution did not enquire from the pathologist who performed the post mortem, whether he thought the scissors – an exhibit of the court –  was capable of inflicting the injury that caused death.
Counsel also referred to the  behavior of the witnesses that day who were attired in towels and would  regard each other as girls by  saying to one another, “Girl – I am more real than you”.
According to him they wore lipstick, make-up, eye shadows and polished  nails.  Even, at the post mortem examination, the deceased was attired with ear rings.
Judge Ramlal agreed with Mr. Ramjattan that the evidence was obviously tenuous and weak.
Also there  was no direct evidence  that any injury inflicted by the accused on the deceased could have caused death.
The judge declared that the investigation by the police was poor and thought that the prosecutors with that type of investigation could not make blood out of stone.
After directing the jury to free the accused on Friday, the judge admonished the accused to change his life style which, the judged noted,  was not only confined to rum drinking,  but to other things.
The accused, said ‘Thank you’ to the judge and strode smilingly from the court room.