Prosecution closes case in casino robbery trial

Nov 09, 2018 News

From left: Andre Blackman, Junior Stuart and Wayne Griffith

After calling 56 witnesses to testify in the trial against three men charged with a multimillion-dollar robbery at the Princess Casino on April 29, 2016, Police Prosecutor Shellon Daniels yesterday closed the case for the state.
Wayne Griffith, 29, of Bagotville, West Bank Demerara; Junior Stuart, 30, of Thomas Street, Kitty, Georgetown; and Andre Blackman, 35, of Middle Street, McDoom, East Bank Demerara, are accused of robbing Daniel Roberts and Alfea Gajadhar of $8,951,000 – property of the Princess Casino.
The three men pleaded not guilty to the charge and are currently out on bail.
Several weeks ago, Griffith, one of the men charged with the robbery, told the Magistrate that he would like to review the entirety of the witnesses’ evidence before the State closes its case.
The Magistrate had granted him time to peruse the evidence; however, yesterday when the matter was called Griffith told the court that he is still in the process of perusing the file and would like to be granted more time to complete doing so.
However, this statement by Griffith did not sit too well with Prosecutor Daniels, who told the court that she will not be held accountable for the lengthy delay in the trial because of Griffith.
The Prosecutor opined that Griffith is using a tactic to delay and drag out the matter.
She then pleaded with the Magistrate to allow her to close her case, citing that the Prosecution team had already called all 56 witnesses in the matter.
Magistrate Latchman after listening to both sides allowed Prosecutor Daniels to close her case. Hence the matter was adjourned until today for the defence to lay over submissions in the case.
According to police, four men arrived at the Ramada Princess Hotel in a white motorcar bearing a fake number plate. They were armed with guns and entered the Princess Casino, discharging several rounds in the process.
They relieved a security guard of his shotgun and ordered patrons and staffers to lie on the ground. It was reported that the gunmen held a cashier at gunpoint and made off with local and foreign currency.
Three of the bandits reportedly escaped on foot, while police were able to apprehend one of them who was reportedly trapped in the Casino. One of the men was reportedly arrested in a house a few days after the robbery with a large quantity of wet money and other valuables.
Another defendant, who was a former security guard at the Casino, allegedly provided the gunmen with vital information about the gambling spot’s operations. During the ordeal, Police Lance Corporal Andrew Richardson and four hotel staffers sustained gunshot wounds.

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