THE duo, Hallman Hunte and Sohan Busjit, who faced a joint indictment over the murder of a fireman, was acquitted on Monday following a unanimous verdict by the twelve-member jury, which included two women.

However, the verdict came as a surprise to Senior State Counsel Judith Gildharie-Mursalin, who was of the opinion that the State had sufficient evidence to warrant a conviction.
Further, she observed that two jurors seemingly shared a close relationship, as the arm of a male juror was seen thrown behind that of his nearby female peer, as they stared at the defence lawyers with what appeared to be a grin of approval, while the foreman returned the ‘not guilty’ verdict.
In addressing Justice Brassington Reynolds, Ms. Mursalin said the Number One accused, Hallman Hunte, faced additional charges of attempted murder, wounding with intent, and common assault. Further, he faces a joint indictment with his co-accused, Sohan Busjit, for the offences of robbery under arms. The robbery-under- arms case is the second indictment, while the first was the just-concluded murder trial, and is listed as Number 23 on the list of cases to be heard at the Berbice Assizes during the February sessions.
However, addressing the men in the dock, the Judge said, “You have heard what the jury said; they have found you both not guilty. You are now discharged. I was informed that you have outstanding matters.”
Following the dismissal, Busjit was returned to the New Amsterdam prison, while Hunte was taken to the Reliance Police Station where he was detained.
Meanwhile, in their defence, the accused men denied that they were at the scene. In an unsworn statement in the dock, Hunte said, “Your Honour, I am innocent; I never had a matter at the Whim Magistrate Court at 2011. Neither was I in prison in 2010. I never attended Alness Living Water Assembly Church with Nadine Crawford or Jane Hawker. I didn’t know where they lived. I never robbed Nadine Crawford, or kill Delon Collins. I am innocent.”
Meanwhile, defence witness, Clerk of Court Shanice Joseph, being led by Attorney-at-Law Ramesh Rajkumar, said that she was assigned to the Whim Magisterial District and observed that there was no record for Hallman Hunte in relation to the year 2010, for the Corentyne Magisterial District, which includes the Whim Magistrate Court.
According to the custodial of the magisterial dockets, Hunte was never charged or placed before the court in 2010.
Responding to questions advanced by State Counsel Mursalin, the witness said that each case emanating from the Corentyne Magisterial District would be kept in her custody.
“I went a little further in my examination of the records to 2008, but did not find anything. I confined the search to 2010 because that was what was requested. I did not find anything until 2012. I checked for the name Lennox Hunte as that was his call name. The filing clerk has the responsibility to record every single docket, and I would verify it. I am not aware that persons can be charged and their names are not recorded in the book.”
Further the witness said, “I know Hallman Hunte was at the Whim Magistrate Court. I was the clerk to the Magistrate at that time. Roughly seventy cases are called per day and I would remember most persons who would appear before the Magistrate between January and December 2013. I knew Hallman Hunte before. If he was there in 2010 I would have known he was there. Once persons consistently attend court I will remember them,” she concluded.
Another defence witness Linden Cornette, Officer-in-Charge of the New Amsterdam Prisons, told the Judge and the mixed jury that on perusing the prison journal it did not reflect that Hallman Hunte, also called Lennox Hunte, was a prisoner in 2010.
Questioned by Mursalin, the witness, who is also the keeper of the prisoners and their records replied, “I confined my search to 2010. I know Ms. Nadine Crawford. I have knowledge of her working at the Prison. I do not know when she assumed duty, but in October 2012, she was introduced to me as the Welfare Officer.”
Meanwhile, the other accused, Sohan Busjit, revealed that he left Guyana two weeks before Christmas in 2011.
“I do not know nothing about what Crawford talking about. I never see Nadine Crawford, I never knew her. On the identification parade, Mr. Persaud put me in the identification parade. Two minutes later the door opened and he say you all come out. Mr. Persaud call me saying Busjit come this way. Mr. Persaud told me that I was the one that people pointed out. I ask Mr. Persaud if I can see the people and he say the people jumped into a car and they drove away. Mr. Persaud took me to a table and had a seat. My fist was in a cuff. He placed a pen in my hand and told me to write my name Sohan Busjit. Since the middle of November I left Guyana and went to Suriname. In January 2012 I was deported form Suriname. I am innocent of this charge. I never knew Hallman Hunte on the road. I met Hallman in 2012 February in prison after he went to court.”
Meanwhile Senior Superintendent [ag] Cornette, who returned to the witness box, said he reviewed the records of Sohan Busjit between November 17 to December 24, 2011 and the accused was not a prisoner.
However, being cross-examined by State Counsel Mursalin, the witness said after he was confronted by Officer Jessame, he confirmed that Busjit was a prisoner while Nadine Crafors was the probation officer attached to the prisons.
The witness further confirmed that the prisoner Busjit was interviewed by Crawford on November 11, 2011, during which period she was asked to contact his relatives on a given telephone number [337-1773]
“Further the Prison Officer confirmed that Busjit was discharged from the New Amsterdam Prison into the custody of the police on December 14, 2011.”
The prosecution’s main witness Ms. Nadine Crawford recounted that she knew her fiancé, Delon Collin three months prior to him meeting his demise on Christmas Eve.
Together with her three children, and her mother, the witness, lived with Collins at her home at Lot 21 Alness Village.
It was at 20.45hrs, moments before Christmas, when the couple along with the children, left the home for Rose Hall Town in motor car PMM 5332 which was driven my Collins.
Whilst at the Rose Hall Township, they went sight-seeing and conducted last minute shopping , before stopping at the Spready’s Snackette at Port Mourant, before returning home at 2300h.
“The now deceased stopped the car in the driveway, allowing the children to exit the back seat. I gave Joshua Crawford, my son, the key to open the northern gate and the door to the garage. As the door was opened the now deceased drove into the garage, whilst I remained seated in the front seat. I then turned to pick items from the back seat, when I heard a scream. It was from of my girls. I did not know which one. I spoke to the now deceased before exiting the car.”
According to the witness, who incidentally is a Probation and Welfare Officer, she recalled being on the second stairs when she was confronted by a short East Indian male, who was armed with a gun.
‘He held my throat. He was demanding that I lie down. He stripped me of my gold chain valued $32,000, a pair of gold earrings valued $7000, and I gave him a silver ring, which cost $3000. It was not the first time I saw the man who took off my jewels. I saw him twice. Once when I was working at the Guyana Prison Service. I heard the car door slammed. I saw the now deceased. I heard what appeared to be a gunshot. The gunman was demanding more jewelry and money. I shouted for my son to bring my purse, which had $17,000 and my bank card. The short East Indian guy took my purse’.
Further, the witness said, another masked individual was pointing a gun to the right side of her temple as the East Indian man took her purse.
“Afterwards, the masked man was searching the car and thereafter signalled the East Indian male for them to leave.”
“I then turned my attention to the garage, where I saw Delon Collins lying facing east. I ran to him. I touched him, but he was motionless. Water was thrown on Delon Collins, then I saw what appeared to be blood coming from his left side. He was taken to the Port Mourant Hospital, where he subsequently died.”
Meanwhile, during her cross-examinations by Defence Counsel Ramesh Rajkumar, Presiding Judge Brassington Reynolds noted that he was befuddled with respect to the nautical description of the witness, house, garage, shop and fence.
However, in her response to the other Defence Counsel Horatio Edmonson, the witness said that on the night of the incident she was not wearing her spectacles.
She said two weeks before the incident, she saw Sohan Busjit in the prison yard and at that time she was wearing her eyeglasses.
Nevertheless, Ms. Crawford related that she did not know who shot the deceased as he was shot outside of the garage.

(By Jeune Bailey-VanKeric)