The trial of 12 men accused of murdering businesswoman Vindra Naipaul-Coolman took a dramatic turn yesterday after the State’s main witness attempted to recant on statements he allegedly gave police in 2007. While the move may have left some members of public in court at the time in shock, it came as no surprise to prosecutors, defence attorneys and even the accused, who all seemed to be well prepared for the situation.
In fact, minutes before Keon Gloster was due to take the witness stand in the Port-of-Spain Second Criminal Court, defence attorney Mario Merritt raised a last-ditched procedural application questioning his mental capacity to give evidence. While presiding Judge Malcolm Holdip noted that Gloster’s medical records showed he had psychological “issues” caused by his epileptic condition, he said that was not sufficient to preclude him from giving evidence in the trial.
“This does not diminish his capacity to testify under oath and remember things relevant to the proceedings,” Holdip said as he dismissed the application. Despite the assurance, Merritt’s concern quickly became evident as Gloster was led into the court and asked to chose a holy book to swear the oath. “I is not a Muslim,” Gloster said loudly as he fumbled while grabbing a Bible from a court marshal.
After pausing repeatedly while answering basic questions on his age, address and educational background, Gloster was asked by lead prosecutor Israel Khan whether he had given a series of statements on Naipaul-Coolman’s murder to police. “No, I never gave any statement,” Gloster, who suffers from a speech impediment, said. Even as he was shown copies of the alleged statements, which have already been tendered into evidence, Gloster maintained his position.
“I can’t remember signing any statement. I swear to Almighty God I am telling you the honest truth,” he said, as he shook his head. Gloster’s repeated denial did not appear to frustrate Khan, who simply kept rephrasing his question while throwing in several seemingly unrelated ones. Khan asked: “Do you know what is a pig tail bucket?” “I never see one in my life,” Gloster, who said he could not read but could write, replied.
While he had no luck in getting Gloster to change his position, Khan did get him to identify each of the 12 accused men by name, although he (Gloster) claimed he could not remember some of their nicknames. “They is all my family. They grow me up from small,” Gloster said.
Case history
Gloster, who is related to almost all the accused men either by blood or marriage and lives in the same community in Upper La Puerta, Diego Martin, was allegedly present when Naipaul-Coolman was killed. He was 17 years old at the time. His alleged statements to police and several pieces of circumstantial evidence recovered during raids of the accused men’s homes form the majority of the State’s evidence in the case. Yesterday’s hearing was not the first time the quality of Gloster’s evidence was questioned since the trial began almost a year ago.
While being cross-examined last year, Homicide detective Inspector Suzette Martin, who reportedly interviewed Gloster, was accused of coercing the statements from him. Martin also admitted that some of the statements were recorded shortly after Gloster was taken to hospital when he suffered a severe bout of epileptic fits while in police custody.
Naipaul-Coolman, the former CEO of her family’s supermarket chain, Xtra Foods, was abducted from her home at Lange Park, Chaguanas, on December 19, 2006. A $122,000 ransom was paid by her family but she was not released and her body has never been found. Prosecutors are contending she was held captive at a house in the Diego Martin community for several days before she was shot dead, dismembered and her body parts disposed of.
When asked yesterday whether he knew the small red brick house identified by investigators as the location of the murder, Gloster said yes but said he did not reveal any details of the crime. He did agree with Khan that several of the accused men used to live in the two-room house, with the others visiting occasionally to play pool. Khan is expected to refer to the details contained in the alleged witness statements when Gloster’s testimony resumes tomorrow.
Legal team
Their legal team includes Ulric Skerritt, Joseph Pantor, Selwyn Mohammed, Lennox Sankersingh, Ian Brooks, Wayne Sturge, Mario Merritt, Richard Valere, Kwesi Bekoe, Colin Selvon, Vince Charles, Christian Chandler, Delicia Helwig and Alexia Romero. The prosecution team includes Senior Counsel Israel Khan and Gilbert Peterson who are being assisted by senior state prosecutors Joy Balkaran and Kelly Thompson.