PRINCIPAL Magistrate Faith McGusty on Friday, July 12, 2019, committed a 22-year-old man to stand trial at the High Court for murder, while his father was freed from the indictment due to insufficient evidence.

Timothy McKenzie, 22 and his father, 56-year-old James McKenzie, both minibus operators, and of Kitty, Georgetown, were charged jointly with the murder of 22-year-old Richmond Noel, who was stabbed and killed near the Stabroek Market on June 4, 2018.

The Preliminary Inquiry (PI) was presided over by Magistrate McGusty, who sits at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court. Evidence was led by Prosecutor Deniro Jones.

Magistrate McGusty, on Friday, ruled that, based on the evidence presented during the PI, a sufficient case was made out again Timothy McKenzie for him to be tried at the High Court.
Meanwhile, James McKenzie was freed from the charge due to insufficient evidence.
According to police reports, Noel and Timothy were known to each other. However, they had a misunderstanding after Timothy reportedly assaulted Noel’s sister.

On the day in question, around 13:30 hours, in the vicinity of Cornhill Street, Stabroek, the two men had a heated confrontation in which Timothy, armed with a knife, approached Noel and reportedly dealt him a single stab to the left side of his chest.

Timothy, it is claimed, was given the knife by his father to confront Noel.

The victim collapsed to the ground and was taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) in an unconscious state where he was examined by a doctor. Noel died while undergoing treatment for the wound.