A man from Belmont, who spent a little over eight years on remand before he was eventually freed of murdering a former Under-23 national footballer, has sued the State.
Abdul Charles, 39, of Upper Belle Eau Road, Belmont, was freed of the charge in 2019 and recently filed a wrongful arrest, false imprisonment, and malicious prosecution case against the Office of the Attorney General.
Charles and Akeem “Sprang” Gomez were accused of murdering 20-year-old Muatah Taylor of Harding Place, Cocorite.
Taylor, a former student of Mucurapo East Secondary School, and two friends were returning home from a boat cruise when they were ambushed by gunmen. He was shot and killed while his friends survived.
After State prosecutors closed their case against the duo, High Court Judge Lisa Ramsumair-Hinds upheld a no-case submission for Charles over the sufficiency of evidence linking him to the crime.
His lawyers challenged the testimony of the State’s main witness, who changed his previous evidence and was deemed a hostile witness.
A 12-member jury before Justice Ramsumair-Hinds considered the evidence against Gomez and took less than half an hour to acquit him.
In the lawsuit, Charles’ lawyers, Peter Taylor (no relation) and Nehanda Samuel, claimed that homicide detectives did not conduct a proper investigation and did not have reasonable or probable cause to arrest and charge him.
Through the lawsuit, Charles is seeking compensation for his lengthy detention and for the embarrassment and distress he endured.
The case has been assigned to High Court Judge Karen Reid, who is expected to host a hearing later this year. — Derek Achong