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Oliver Hinckson walks on conspiracy charge
Former Army Lieutenant Oliver Hinckson walked out of the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court a free man after Acting Chief Magistrate Melissa Robertson yesterday discharged the conspiracy to incite a terrorist act charge.
Hinckson had been before the courts since March 2008.
Oliver Hinckson
The charge stemmed from impromptu statements Hinckson made at a press conference hosted by Georgetown Mayor, Hamilton Green at City Hall.
Defence attorney Nigel Hughes, who along with Llewellyn John and Gregory Gaskin, represented Hinckson, made no case submissions on behalf of the former army officer after Special Prosecutor Sanjeev Datadin had failed to appear in court to present witnesses on behalf of the state.
Yesterday, the magistrate in handing down her ruling, said she was “upholding the no case submission, adding that a prima facie case had not being established against Hinckson”.
The magistrate further told the court that the prosecution had called four witnesses and they all failed to produce sufficient evidence against Hinckson so that he could be placed before a judge and jury. Special Prosecutor Sanjeev Datadin was not present in court as the ruling was being made.
Yesterday, the defence inquired if the firearm and ammunition charges would be dealt together. But Magistrate Robertson set September 3, for report on the firearm and ammunition matters.
Yesterday after the ruling, Hinckson appeared very relieved since it had been 18 months of anxiety.
During that period, Hinckson was denied the opportunity to continue studies at the University of Guyana.
He had insisted from the beginning that there was nothing in the statements he made that necessitated the charge against him.
According to one of his attorneys, yesterday’s ruling has vindicated this position.
“As the case proceeded towards the end we felt that the prosecution had run out of options and it was just like a boxer waiting for you to knock him down so that he could come out of the ring,” the attorney said.
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