| As the murder trial for Shawn Richardson continued before Madame Justice Dawn Gregory, two more policemen took to the witness box yesterday.Richardson is accused of killing Enterprise taxi driver Vivekanand Nandalall between October 2003 and March 2004. State Prosecutors Konyo Sandiford and Judith Gildharie-Mursalin are presenting the case.Retired Deputy Superintendent of Police Paul Kawall, was called upon to give his evidence in chief.According to Kawall on October 17, 2003, he was the duty officer at the Vigilance Police Station, when he received a telephone call. The court was told by Kawall, that he and a party of policemen went to Annadale Railway Embankment where they found an abandoned car. He described to the court how the car was parked. Kawall said that he subsequently went back to the Vigilance Police Station where he learned that the car belonged to the victim.After receiving this information, Kawall said that they went to Nandalall’s home at Lot 125 Block ‘A’ Non Pareil, East Coast Demerara.Upon arriving at the residence, the victim’s cousin Basmattie Nandalall greeted the officers. Kawall said that in their presence, the woman picked up her phone and dialed a number. She began speaking, and soon after the woman started crying and handed the phone to him.The witness said he left the home, soon after, and returned to the Vigilance Police Station, where he wrote a statement and affixed his signature.Under cross examination by defence counsel Clarissa Riehl, Kawall was asked who gave him directions, to which he replied Assistant Superintendents of Police Wills and Cosbert.The lawyer further questioned the witness as to why he was at the Vigilance Police Station when he was rightly stationed at Sparendaam. To this question Kawall replied that it was during the crime spree and officers were usually shifted around between stations.Riehl continued her cross examination by asking if any fingerprinting was done.The witness explained that he had nothing to do with the investigations, and fingerprinting comes under the investigational process. Further, he stated that up until he left the scene, the car was not fingerprinted.Following Kawall on the stand was retired Deputy Superintendent Alwyn Wilson, who spoke about contacting the defendant Shawn Richardson.According to Wilson, he showed the accused a picture of the victim, to which he replied “this is the man and I gun tell yuh wha I know”.Richardson, he related, was asked if he wanted to put what he knew in writing and he accepted that option.Wilson said he took out an A182b form (Caution Statement) and headed up the defendant’s information. Richardson, according to Wilson, then gave him a story to which he made note of.After taking the information the caution was read to the accused and he accepted it, Wilson told the court. He said that the caution was taken in the presence of Assistant Superintendent Cosbert who signed as witness. Richardson also signed the statement afterwards. Wilson told the court that at no time, before,Asics Kayano 23 Homme, during or after were any threats used. The court conducted a voir dire during the afternoon session.On Tuesday, last, Station Sergeant Geoffrey Tate, Assistant Superintendent Michael Kingston and Police Photographer Osmond Semple all gave their evidence in chief.On Monday, the first witness to give evidence was Nandalall’s uncle, Heeralall Kishore. The man testified to certain aspects of the kidnapping and the ransom which was paid by the relatives who pooled their financial resources.Basmattie Nandalall, one of the victim’s cousins, and Lance Corporal Elroy Masau were also called to testify.On March 12, 2004, a GuySuCo field supervisor found Nandalall’s skeleton, with one bullet hole to the skull, about a mile and a half south of the Bachelor’s Adventure Squatting Area. |
