A nine-member jury led by High Court Judge Wynante Adrien-Roberts will deliver a ruling on the case of Lester Roberts today December 20. From Castle Bruce, Roberts was implicated in the December 1, 2016 death of 22-year-old Gerald Joseph. Roberts is accused of stabbing Joseph in the chest with a “butterfly knife”.
A Trinidadian lawyer, Keith Scotland, is leading the prosecution and he wants the jury to return a verdict of “guilty of murder” against Roberts.
In his testimony at the dock, Robert said he was sitting on the fateful day on a wall that is 20-feet high. He said he saw Gerald and his brother Chewy and another individual approaching him. He said Gerald wanted to tell him something but he was not interested in what he had to say. He said Gerald got angry and hit him on his chest and together with Chewy tried to push him over the wall.
Roberts said he swung at his attackers and then ran home. The next day, he received a call that Gerald was dead, and he immediately reported himself to the Castle Bruce police station. The accused said he swung the knife in his hand at Gerald in self-defence. The knife was in his possession to cut cane.
The accused did not call any witnesses for his defence.
Scotland accused Roberts of planting a knife in the deceased’s chest to kill him and urged the jury to declare him guilty. Defence counsel Peter Alleyne said Roberts was attacked by three men while seating precariously on a 20-foot wall; and he defended himself because everything happened so quickly. He wants the jury to return with a verdict of “not guilty”.
Judge Wynantte Adrien-Roberts will sum up the case before the jury who will then retire into their chamber to decide on a verdict.
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