THE Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) will today commence hearing an appeal filed by Bibi Shareema Gopaul and her ex-lover Jarvis ‘Barry’ Small challenging their conviction and 45-year sentence for the brutal murder of Neesa Gopaul.

The hearing is expected to begin at 09:00hrs via video conference and will be streamed on the court’s YouTube page.

In 2015, a jury found Gopaul and Small guilty of murdering the 16-year-old. They were later sentenced by Justice Navindra Singh to 106 years and 96 years, respectively. The murdered teen was Gopaul’s eldest daughter.

The pair subsequently filed an appeal at the Court of Appeal challenging their conviction and sentence and in September 2021, the court reduced their respective sentences to 45 years; the conviction was however upheld.

For the CCJ case, Small will be represented by attorney-at-law Nigel Hughes and Associates, while attorney-at-law Arud Gossai is on record for Gopaul.

The attorneys have asked the court to reverse and/or set aside the convictions. They are also arguing that the sentences were too severe, given the circumstances of the case. The attorneys in the court documents filed on behalf of the duo, claim that the trial was unfair, and that the judge erred in law.

Prior to the murder, Small and Bibi were in a relationship, and, at one time, Small had even lived with Gopaul and her two daughters including Neesa, at Leonora, West Coast Demerara.

Neesa’s body was found submerged in a suitcase in the Madewini Creek in the vicinity of the Emerald Towers Resort on October 2, 2010, around 14:00hrs, and at the time was believed to be
headless.

A post-mortem later revealed that the body was not headless but was, instead, clobbered beyond recognition.

Dumbbells similar to those found in a gym owned by Small were found tied to the suitcase in which the body was found.

In addition to the body, a passport bearing the name Neesa Lalita Gopaul was also found. The teenager was reported missing just days before the gruesome discovery was made.
Subsequent to the discovery of the body, Bibi and Small were arrested and were later charged for the crime.