Last week Friday, our headline story was the acquittal of Michelle Brown. She's the Woman Police Constable charged with the December 2017 murder of Fareed Ahmad, the well-known barber from Hattieville.
As we told you, Justice Colin Williams, who presided over the trial without a jury, arrived at a not-guilty verdict because he had reasonable doubt in the prosecution's case against Brown. Police say that they found what may have been the murder weapon in the wreckage of Ahmad's vehicle. One of her police colleagues testified that he issued her with a service firearm so that she could perform her tour of duty for that day. He claimed that she never returned it. During his testimony, this officer made a critical error about the model of firearm he claimed that he issued to her. Also, no log-sheet - the documentary proof of the said issuance - was produced in the trial as evidence.
Another important omission in the case was that there was no direct evidence that the weapon found in the wreckage of the deceased victim's vehicle was the weapon that was used to shoot him. One of the prosecution's witnesses testified that she took samples of what appeared to be bloodstains on that found weapon. Forensics testing was allegedly done on those collected samples, but, those test results were not provided as evidence in the trial.
After carefully considering all the evidence in the prosecution's case, the judge was not satisfied that the prosecution proved that Brown shot Ahmad and that she did so with an intent to kill.
This morning, the press asked the Police Commissioner for his views on the outcome of this case - one made even more sensational because she accused another cop of executing the murder. Williams told the media that while she has been acquitted of criminal charges, she will now have to answer to disciplinary charges about her police-issued firearm, which she allegedly did not return hours before Ahmad's murder:
Chester Williams - Commissioner of Police
"I'm not going to comment on the outcome of the trial because I don't want to be cited for contempt of court. But, in terms of the female police officer, I have directed the Professional Standards Branch to charge her internally. And so now, she's going to go through the internal process of the police."
Reporter
"Charged for what, sir?"
Chester Williams
"It is going to be an act of prejudice toward good order and discipline and in respect of the firearm that was handed over to her, that she was supposed to return the evening after she came off work and did not do so. That is an act of neglect of duty."
Reporter
"Sir, can you speak also on the angle of her calling another officer - accusing another officer of this crime?"
Chester Williams
"Well, the whole society would know that prior to Miss Brown being charged, she was in custody for over a day, and she was interviewed and questioned, including by myself. And at no time during her questioning did she bring up the fact that anybody else was in that vehicle. I partook in the investigation, and there were 2 eyewitnesses who actually saw the accident occurring, and were the first on the scene. And both eyewitnesses said that at no time did they see anybody leaving that vehicle after the vehicle crashed. They also said that during the time that they went to the vehicle - the accident - the doors were still locked. So, I don't see how I could believe her story that someone else was in the vehicle. An intensive investigation was done with a view to ascertaining whether or not other persons were in the vehicle. And that investigation revealed that there were no other persons in the vehicle. And I will leave it at that."
