He was accused of trying to kill two men and last night a jury convicted Henry Baptist of one count of attempted murder but they were unable to agree on a verdict on the second. The 28 year old was charged for the June 14th 2004 shooting of Victor Olivera Jr. and Kevin Diaz in San Ignacio Town.
The men say that around midnight they were heading to Olivera's house when Baptist, who was wearing a mask, approached them and opened fire. Both men were hit. After deliberating for two hours - the jury returned with a guilty verdict for the shooting of Kevin Diaz but were unsure about Victor Olivera Jr. Justice Adolph Lucas sent them back into deliberations and when they returned 2 hours later, at about 8:15, they still hadn't agreed on a verdict. Justice Lucas then declared it a hung jury.
Their indecision is notable because of the two injured - Olivera was more seriously hurt. Baptist defended himself during the trial while Crown Counsel Audrey Matura was the prosecutor. Baptist will be retried for the Victor Olivera shooting in the January session of the Supreme Court. We should that he is on remand at the Hattieville Prison for an unrelated murder.
