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Main witness testified at Kartel trial

The main witness for the prosecution testified yesterday at the murder trial of entertainer Vybz Kartel and his four co-accused that on August 16, 2011, he saw Clive ‘Lizard’ Williams lying motionless on the living room floor at Kartel’s house in Havendale, St Andrew.

He said he and Williams were taken in a taxi to the house, where Kartel questioned them about two missing guns, and Williams said they planned to buy back the guns.

The Crown is alleging at the trial in the Home Circuit Court that Kartel, whose real name is Adidja Palmer; entertainer Shawn Campbell, popularly known as Shawn Storm; André St John; Shane Williams; and Kahira Jones, murdered Williams on August 16, 2011.

The witness said that on the afternoon of August 16, 2011, he was called to Campbell’s home in Waterford, St Catherine. When he went there, he saw Williams at Campbell’s gate. He said Campbell told Williams that Kartel wanted to see him because since the guns went missing, he had not seen them.

He said he left for his home and some time later that evening, he saw Williams and Campbell come to his gate in a taxi. He went with them in the taxi and they all went to a house in Havendale.

When they arrived at the gate, St John was at the premises; he opened the gate and they went inside. The taxi driver did not go inside with them. He said Kartel invited them inside the house.

Questioned by prosecutor Jeremy Taylor as to what happened inside the house, he said Kartel asked what happened.

He said he told Kartel that he was at work, and that it was Brown and Lizard who had gone for the guns, and Lizard said he had given Brown the guns to put back. Kartel then asked what they planned to do, and Lizard told him that they planned to buy back the guns.

The witness said that Jones then held Lizard and he (witness) ran to a back room because he feared that something was going to happen to him, too.

He said Kartel and Shawn Storm brought him back to the living room, where he saw Williams lying motionless on the floor and St John holding a building block in his hand, while Jones was bending over Lizard. He said he felt he was going to be next, so he ran from the house, jumped the gate, and went on to the road. He said he saw Kartel following him.

Kartel told him it was a man called ‘Brown’ and Lizard who had stolen the guns. He said Kartel, who was limping, said a dog had bitten him and he wanted to go to the hospital. The witness said he stopped a taxi and went with Kartel to the hospital.

After they left the hospital, he went to Waterford that night, where he saw Campbell, who told him not to tell anyone that Lizard went into the taxi with them earlier that evening. He said he did not hide the information.

The witness said he felt he was going to be next, so he ran from the house, jumped the gate, and went on to the road.