Accused had promised to tell investigators who killed Neesa Gopaul – police witness

Feb 11, 2015 News

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A police witness testifying in the Neesa Gopaul murder trial told the court yesterday that one of the accused, Jarvis Small, had promised to tell investigators who murdered the teenager.

Small and Bibi Shareema Gopaul are on trial at the High Court before Justice Navindra Singh and a mixed 12 -member jury.
Small is being represented by a team of lawyers including Glenn Hanoman, Bernard De Santos SC, Lyndon Amsterdam and Zanna Frank, while Gopaul is being represented by Attorney-at-Law, George Thomas.  The matter is being prosecuted by State Attorneys Diana Kaulesar, Stacy Gooding and Mercedes Thompson.
Yesterday, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Marlon Chapman told the court that he was part of a team of investigators involved in the case.
Chapman told the court that he was stationed at Criminal Investigation Department, (CID) at the Brickdam Police Station in October, 2010 when he received certain information relative to an alleged murder.
Chapman said that based on the information received, he visited the home of Bibi Gopaul.
He said that he went to Gopaul’s premises accompanied by a party of policemen. When he arrived at the house, the policeman said that he met with Gopaul’s father, Mohamed Kayoum, who identified himself as the Imam of the neighbourhood Masjid.
He said that Gopaul was also present at the time. The witness said that Gopaul’s father gave the ranks

access to the premises and he thereafter instructed them to enter the yard and house. Chapman noted that the ranks spent “a while”, on the premises after which they returned to the Station and told him something.  As a result of what they told him, the policeman said that he returned to the Brickdam Police Station.
The Assistant Commissioner recounted that on October 6, 2010, he was present at Ruimveldt Police Station when Corporal Jessimy held a confrontation between Small and another man he identified as Bharrat Samaroo.
According to the witness, Samaroo told Small that he (Small) had instructed him to paint two dumbbells for him, but the accused denied this, saying that he told the man no such thing. Small had said that “he aint know nothing about that or words to that effect.”  Chapman noted too that the dumbbells were painted in black, red and white. He was thereafter shown the dumbbells in court, which he identified as the ones he had previously seen at the station.
In his evidence, the policeman disclosed that sometime during the investigations, Small had told the police investigators that he would tell them who killed Neesa Gopaul, but he would only do so in the presence of his attorney, Senior Counsel Bernard De Santos.
The officer noted however, that on October 17, 2010, he was present at the Ruimveldt Police Station when De Santos visited the station. He said that the lawyer refused to have any conversation with Small and

the police.
A little while after that, the witness said that a confrontation was held between Small and Bibi Gopaul in the presence of police ranks. Chapman said that he was present when Gopaul told Small that she had given him the keys to her gate and house, but he told her that he could not remember any such thing.
The witness said that on October 20, 2010, former Police Commander, George Vyphuis telephoned him and told him something. As a result of what Vyphuis said, the witness said that Simone De Nobrega, a female prisoner, who was in custody at the East La Penitence Police Station, visited his office.
The policeman said that he thereafter instructed ranks to interview the woman and obtain a statement from her. He said that De Nobrega was subsequently placed in custody at the Beterverwagting Police Station for security reasons. Chapman related that on November 13, 2010, he was accompanied to New Amsterdam, Berbice, by Superintendent of Police Steven Greaves who is attached to Police Forensic Laboratory at Eve Leary.
The officer told the court that together they visited Bibi Gopaul, who was in custody at the female prison facility.  The purpose of the visit, the witness said, was to obtain DNA samples from Gopaul, which would be used in identifying Neesa Gopaul.  He noted that Gopaul consented and the forensic expert used a swab to take samples from the inside of her mouth.
Corporal Floyd Hossanah also continued his portion of evidence yesterday. Hossanah was also under cross examination by defence attorneys.  Hossanah told the court that he had submitted one statement in relation to the matter.  He said that he headed the Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) in the case.
However under cross examination by defence attorney Glenn Hanoman, the witness responded many times by stating he “could not recall” or “could not say.”
He accepted as a CSI expert that his job was to analyze and collect anything of evidential value found at the scene where the remains were discovered, but noted he had not checked any of the buildings at the scene for anything of evidential value nor did he instruct any other officer to do so.
Hossanah noted too that he did not find any clothing, blood or hair or any such particles on the site and also accepted that the surfaces of objects collected and the objects on site at the resort were not tested for fingerprints.
He also agreed that after leaving the scene there were a number of questions left unanswered as to the identity of the deceased; how she met her demise and where the incident took place. The witness told the court that he had planned to return to the scene. At this point, Hanoman asked him whether he had done anything to secure the area.
“Yes sir,” the witness replied, noting that was one of the first things that he instructed the ranks to do was to cordon off the area. Hossanah was then asked to point out any evidence of the tapes used to cordon off the area in the photographs taken at the scene, but he couldn’t. The attorney then suggested to Hossanah that he had lied to the court, but he denied this.
Hanoman subsequently asked the witness whether he or any other police officer had asked any persons from around the vicinity if they had seen or heard anything. He answered in the negative and noted that he did not because it was getting late and the place was getting dark.
“So you are saying that police can’t ask people questions in the dark, you only ask people questions in the daytime?” Hanoman asked.
Hossanah subsequently accepted that since he never went back to the crime scene his investigations were incomplete.
Corporal Ryan Leacock, another witness, testified that he had arrested Small at a house at Leonora, West Coast Demerara. Leacock said that he had cautioned and arrested Small based on information relating to an alleged murder committed on 16-year-old Queen’s College student Neesa Gopaul
Days after she was reported missing the teen’s body was found at a location along the Soesdyke/Linden Highway tucked inside a suitcase that was partially submerged in a creek. A rope was wrapped around the body and on its other end dumbbells were attached, apparently in an effort to keep the body under water.
A family on an outing made the discovery when they became aware of an offensive smell.
Inside the suitcase, a passport bearing the name Neesa Lalita Gopaul, along with a bank card, was found. Following investigations, the teen’s mother Bibi and her then lover, Small, were arrested and charged for the murder.

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