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Murder accused, Nolwyn Bennette aka Nolly B leaves the Serious Offences Court on Wednesday, Oct. 3, 2024.
Murder accused, Nolwyn Bennette aka Nolly B leaves the Serious Offences Court on Wednesday, Oct. 3, 2024.

A lawyer on Wednesday sought a speedy trial for former media personality Nolwyn Bennette aka Nolly B, of Calliaqua, who is charged with murder over the stabbing death in Calliaqua, on Monday.

Bennette, a 45-year-old businessman and former NICE Radio announcer, is accused of murder in connection with the stabbing death of Elijah Crease.

Crease, a 34-year-old labourer, of Prospect, died at the Milton Cato Memorial Hospital, where he was taken after a stabbing incident involving another male in Calliaqua on Monday.  

Bennette was arraigned on the murder charge before Senior Magistrate Colin John at the Serious Offences Court on Wednesday.

He was not allowed to plead to the indictable charge and the magistrate explained that bail was not open to him.

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As the magistrate was about to announce the date for a preliminary inquiry, Bennette’s lawyer, Grant Connell, said that usually, the prosecution would say the position of the file at that point.

Connell noted that Bennette could only be admitted to bail if the preliminary inquiry is not completed after nine months.

He said that because of the nature of the case and knowing that Bennette had made a report to the police prior to the incident, the defence was asking for a paper committal within one month.

A paper committal is a preliminary procedure in which the defence, prosecution and magistrate go through the witness statements and the magistrate decides whether there is enough evidence to commit a person to stand trial before the High Court.

It is faster than a usual preliminary hearing in which all of the witnesses have to come to court and testify.

The lawyer said the prosecutor had charged Bennette although they had a file, which, at best, contained two witness reports and the post mortem results.

However, prosecutor Inspector of Police Renrick Cato suggested that Connell did not know what was the state of the file.

Cato further said Connell knows that the charge is murder and “never, ever, ever” on the first day of arraignment, there is a complete file for such a charge.

“That will never happen and counsel knows that,” the prosecutor said.

Cato said he did not have difficulty in having the matter called within a month.

He, however, said he could not give the assurance that the file would be ready within a month so a paper committal could take place.

The prosecutor, however, said he believes the investigator, detective Corporal Henry Hoyte, would do his best to prepare the file within the month.

Cato said that if the file cannot be ready within a month, he would be forced to ask for an adjournment.

But Connell told the court that Cato was saying that the prosecution could just look at the factual matrix, charge someone for murder and throw the person in jail until they put together their file.

“That is nonsense!” the lawyer said, adding that the prosecution could bond an individual to report to the station until they put their house in order, before laying a charge.

He said the justice system had outgrown preliminary inquiries, even as he said the process may be a strainer and shift out a case or two.

“But the prosecution has a duty to prepare their case,” Connell said, adding that Bennette’s case is “one that needs to get before a judge and jury as soon as possible.

“And the system allows for it,” Connell further stated.

The lawyer questioned how a file could go to the Director of Public Prosecution and instructions given to the police to lay a charge but the file is incomplete.

He said the prosecution causes significant delays in the justice system in the country, adding that Bennette’s case is a perfect example.

“Nolwyn Bennette wants to go to the high court ASAP before a judge and a jury. Who is stopping him? You have charged him. You have put the cart before the horse,” the lawyer said and asked the court to intervene.

The magistrate declined Connell’s application to order disclosure before the near hearing in the case. He adjourned the matter to Nov. 5 for an update.

Bennette is the second former media worker to be charged with murder since 2017.

On March 10, 2023, former journalist Junior Jarvis, then 50, was sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison for the Feb. 14, 2017 murder of banker Randy Lawrence, 39 at Arnos Vale.

2 replies on “Lawyer seeks speedy trial for former media man accused of murder”

  1. As usual mr Connell is dictating to the Judge how he should run the courts. With all the crimes going on in SVG he’s is pretending to take a high position as if he knows better. The has been a death of man before the court let us see if the police have done their job.

  2. Connel believes he is the law. Its only in St Vincent he thinks he can run things. It will not happen. Let justice takes cours e it is persons like Justice Connel who has hamstrung the criminal Justice System in St Vincent by his semantics. Whether, the accused is a media person or not he is not above the law. He has committed a criminal act in which a person lost their life. Justice must not only ne done it must be seen to be done as stated in Regina v Sussex.

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