A DEMERARA Assize jury yesterday found 74-year-old Donald Mopp, called ‘Chetty’ guilty of murdering 34-year-old Winsel Roger Edwards at a vulcanizing shop on February 15, 2013.Some witnesses had said that Chetty who was a ‘limer’ at the Greenidge Vulcanizing Shop on the day in question had been exhibiting signs of drunkenness, and was walking unsteadily and on one occasion had to be guided to his seat.

Earlier that morning on that fateful day Chetty and Roger, now deceased, were hurling demeaning remarks at each other. Roger was calling ‘Chetty’ an old ‘anti-man’ while Chetty was referring to Roger as a ‘fagot’, who dressed with his underwear exposed.
A witness also said that following the row between the men that morning, Chetty took a car and went away but returned later with the same vehicle that he had hired. He was walking unsteadily and had to be guided to a chair which he normally used when at the shop.
Soon after Roger was standing some distance away from him when Chetty moved quickly towards him, grabbed him from the back, and both of them got entangled with two tyres and fell to the ground. At this stage Roger shouted that Chetty had bored him.
Roger was taken to hospital and later died.
Following police investigations, Chetty was charged with murder.
Among other things, he told the police that he did not know what had happened. However, one witness said that a knife blade was found on the ground and following the injury to Roger, Chetty was seen with a knife handle which he threw onto a grassy lawn.
At his trial before Presiding Judge, Madame Roxanne George and a mixed jury, Chetty was represented by Attorney-at-Law, Miss Deborah Kumar and he pleaded not guilty. Miss Stacy Goodings prosecuted.
In an unsworn statement from the dock, the accused said that Roger was his good friend, who had done nothing to him, and therefore he had no reason to hurt him.
After the jury returned the unanimous verdict of guilty of murder, defence lawyer Kumar requested that a probation report on the accused should precede sentencing.
The judge agreed and the 14th of May was fixed for the presentation of the report and the passing of sentence.

By George Barclay