JUSTICE Dawn Gregory, presiding in the Lancaster Kuru Kuru murder trial, spent more than two (2) hours  yesterday trying to record an unsworn statement from the dock being made by the stammering accused Burt Lancaster, called ‘Moses’. In the record time of over 2 hours, with moving lips and sometimes nothing being heard, no more than 38 words were listed as coming from the accused.
Lancaster is alleged to have kidnapped taxi driver, Deonarine Sukhdeo on the Kuru Kuru trail on 19th April 2006, causing in the process Sukhdeo’s death and Daywan Kawal, Lancaster’s companion at the time, being charged with murder along with Lancaster. Kawal was jailed for 7 years for manslaughter, in keeping with a plea agreement; and the DPP freed two other alleged accomplices of the charges they had faced.
Lancaster kept moving his lips and uttering inaudible words, before finally telling the judge, “That is all.”
This morning, Lancaster’s counsel, Attorney-at-law, Mr. Basil Williams, will begin addressing the jury. He is expected to try convincing the jury that his client should be given the benefit of the doubt, with their returning a verdict of him not being guilty of the murder of Deonarine Sukhdeo.
Conversely, Miss Konyo Sandiford, the leading prosecutor in this case, who is appearing with Miss Diana Kaulesar, will present the prosecution’s case to the jury. She is expecting a verdict of guilty.