High Court Judge Navindra Singh Tuesday set May 6, 2021, for ruling in a constitutional motion filed by murder accused Lennox Wayne. In the case, Wayne called “Two Colours” among other things, is seeking a permanent stay of the murder charge against him on the ground that this constitutional right to a fair trial within a reasonable time as guaranteed under Article 144 of the Constitution of Guyana has been infringed.
Wayne has spent almost seven years on remand on the murder charge. He was charged jointly along with Melroy Doris for the July 10, 2014 murder of Ashmini Harriram, the 19-year-old cosmetologist who was shot dead just after she disembarked a minibus at Lusignan on the East Coast of Demerara.
According to the facts of the matter, on the day in question, Harriram and her cousin were walking along Lusignan Public Road when they saw a burgundy motorcar, PRR 8370 parked along the said road.
A few minutes after, Harriram was shot to the head. Police investigations revealed that Doris was in possession of the car at the time the teen was shot. Wayne and Doris reportedly gave caution statements in which they detailed their roles in executing the crime.
They were arrested for the killing in September 2014.
On March 11, 2021, Doris appeared before Justice Brassington Reynolds and pleaded guilty to the lesser count of manslaughter. The confessed killer will be sentenced on Thursday, March 25, 2021.
Following a Preliminary Inquiry, both of them were in 2015 committed to stand trial for the offence at the Demerara Criminal Assizes. Their trial commenced in April 2017 and ended a few weeks after in a hung jury. As such, the Trial Judge further remanded them to prison pending a retrial at the next practicable session of the Demerara Criminal Assizes.
However, almost four years later, Wayne has not been brought before a judge and jury for his retrial to commence. Taking this into consideration, Wayne, through his lawyers Nigel Hughes and Ronald Daniels has filed a constitutional motion seeking certain reliefs.
Apart from seeking a permanent stay of the murder charge against him, Wayne is claiming damages in excess of $100,000 for the breach of his fundamental right; a declaration that his fundamental right has been breached; interests; costs, and such further or other orders the court finds just.
Shortly after Wayne filed the motion, the Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions released a press statement in which it said that on several occasions in November 2020, Wayne indicated that he was desirous of pleading guilty to the lesser offence; he, however, changed his decision.
Wayne is the main witness in the case of former veteran policeman Leyon Lindo, who was in 2017, committed to stand trial for allegedly conspiring to murder businessman Mohamed Khan, whose decapitated corpse was found at Cummings Lodge, Greater Georgetown in 2015.
According to the charge against Lindo, who was previously attached to the Tactical Services Unit (TSU), between July 8 and July 10, 2014, at Eve Leary, Georgetown, he conspired with Wayne, the alleged hitman to murder Khan. Lindo’s case is yet to be called for trial.