‘Henry boys were not killed for coconuts’

–  Nigel Hughes again calls for int’l forensics assistance to help solve crime

ATTORNEY-AT-LAW, Nigel Hughes does not believe that the Henry cousins of No.3 Village, West Coast Berbice were killed for allegedly stealing coconuts and he again urged the authorities here to seek International forensic assistance to help solve the crime.

Writing on his Facebook page- the second for Monday Hughes a very successful  criminal lawyer  said a convenient theory is that the boys: Joel Henry and Isaiah Henry were murdered because they were stealing coconuts.

“I haven’t seen many accused  who kill persons for theft go to the extent of the debauchery disclosed by these murders,” the attorney wrote. Many Guyanese believe the killing was a hate crime and the village of the slaughter is a stronghold of the the ruling PPP/C.

The government has since condemned the killing and promised that it will spare no effort on bringing the perpetrators to justice. Three men have since been detained.

Meanwhile, Hughes in calling for International assistance said that that in 2008 when eight miners were slaughtered at Lindo Creek, there was a recommendation and offer of international assistance from globally recognised forensic experts to assist in the conduct of the investigation.
He recalled that the offer was declined by the Guyana Police Force on the basis that they had all the capacity they needed.
“The  convenient theory at the time was that it was fine man.” Hughes said in  2019 the families of the slain Lindo Creek miners were no closer to identifying the remains of their loved ones by  the conduct of basic DNA testing and certainly no closer to identifying who murdered their relatives.

He said the remains of only two of the eight miners were positively identified, a decade after the murder and after a Commission of Inquiry.
“The  forensic capacity of the Guyana Police Force has not seen significant improvements since 2008 or 2019, Hughes argues noting that there is no indication whether the GPF has the capacity to conduct: biological trace evidence gathering; recovery of DNA from finger nail clippings of the deceased bodies and sophisticated toxicology examinations.

He said the real danger here is that the public will be presented with confessions which are likely to be contradicted at the trial by the forensic evidence by which time the anger and indignation would have long subsided.

“We cannot as a country continue to do the same things over and over and expect different results. We cannot afford another repeat of Lindo creek and the unsolved murders of so many of our citizens and we certainly don’t want to send some innocent citizens to prison based solely on alleged confessions,” the attorney exhorted.

He said the rest of the world has moved on from confessions and eye witness accounts.
“Let us at least try to rely more on science and less on the human factor. Independent international forensic experts are our best option. They at least would appear to have no skin in the game.”