Pair found guilty of murder of footballer
The family of Randy Robinson will move on following the conviction of his killers, according to Mr Robinson’s aunt, Gina Spence.In Supreme Court yesterday, Jay Dill, 23, and Devon Hewey, 24, were both found guilty by unanimous verdict of the premeditated murder of Mr Robinson, and using a firearm to commit the offence.Reacting to the verdict, Ms Spence said her family has been given some resolution, but two other families now have to deal with losing their son’s to the system.“Justice has been served, but in cases like this no one wins,” she said. “We are praying for the families of those two boys.”Mr Robinson was gunned down on March 31, 2011 while walking along Border Lane North to his father’s house. The two had planned to enjoy a lobster dinner.A witness, who cannot be named, said that just before 8.30pm that day two men on a motorcycle stopped in the middle of the road near Mr Robinson.The pillion passenger produced a handgun with his left hand and fired multiple shots at the victim before the two men rode away towards The Glebe Road.The father-of-one was shot once in the heart, and once in the head.According to pathologist Christopher Milroy, the second wound was received when Mr Robinson was already on the ground. He died at the scene.While the witness could not identify the gunman or the person riding the motorcycle because they were wearing full-face visors, he said they were both wearing dark clothing and the motorcycle was a black Scoopy.Prosecutors alleged that Dill was the gunman while Hewey rode the motorcycle. Both men were arrested at Hewey’s Palmetto Road home the morning after the shooting.Subsequent tests found several particles of gun shot residue (GSR) on a black shirt taken from Dill at the Hamilton Police, and a single particle in his pants pockets.Component particles of GSR were found on several other items of clothing seized, along with both defendant’s hands and motorcycles.Police gang expert Alex Rawlins told the court that both defendants were members of a gang called 42, based in the St Monica’s Road area.That gang, he said, has been involved in a series of tit-for-tat shootings against the rival Parkside gang, also based in Pembroke.He also told the court that Mr Robinson was not a member of Parkside, but two of his cousins were.Both Dill and Hewey denied any involvement in the shooting. Dill, testifying in his own defence, said they were both at the Mid Atlantic Boat Club when the shooting took place.He also denied being involved in an earlier altercation in St George’s in which Mr Robinson was attacked by a group of men, but said he was at the scene.Dill further denied being a gang member, and told the court he was friendly with the victim who he had played football with when he was younger.His brother, Kofi Dill, meanwhile told the court that the shirt found with GSR particles belonged to him, and he may have discharged a firearm while wearing it.Hewey did not speak in his own defence during the trial or call any witnesses.After around three hours of deliberation, at around 4pm yesterday the jury delivered unanimous verdicts of guilty on all counts.Puisne Judge Carlisle Greaves ordered social inquiry reports be carried out on both men prior to sentencing.Reacting to the news, Ms Spence said Mr Robinson’s family were grateful for the trial to be over.“It was pretty difficult having to live a lot of it again through the court case,” she said. “Each family member had to deal with it again in their own way.”Chief Inspector Nick Pedro said the conviction demonstrates the importance of public assistance in dealing with violent crime.“This case underscores the difficulties of prosecuting cases in a small community,” he said. “It also underscores the need for people to come forward and assist the police.“Here we have again seen another case where people have stood up to the plate and helped the police and the Department of Public Prosecutions in prosecuting a very difficult case and bring two dangerous killers to justice.”
The trial of Jay Dill and Devon Hewey was marked by heightened security following concerns from the jury.
While Chief Inspector Nick Pedro said yesterday that police always carry out risk assessments before major trials, particularly gang murder trials, days into the trial the jury sent a letter to Puisne Judge Carlisle Greaves, expressing concerns about their safety and the safety of their families.
In the letter, the jury said they had seen someone in the courtroom with a cell phone who may have been taking photographs.
He was allegedly also seen staring at a juror, and was seen again outside the courtroom near where the jury took breaks.
The jurors also expressed concern that they had seen individuals in the courtroom wearing “gang colours”.
Mr Justice Greaves read the letter to the courtroom without the jury present.
While he said the court had not heard anything about “gang colours,” the other aspects of the letter demonstrated that security needed to be stepped up immediately.
He warned the courtroom that while only a handful of officers were visible, including security guards and the court’s main entrance with metal detectors, less visible security measures were also in place.
“There are more officers around here than you see. There are a lot of police officers around here all the time,” he said.
The judge also warned that any attempt to interfere with the jury, or any action that appeared to be an attempt at witness intimidation, would be met with a harsh punishment.
“I guarantee that if convicted by myself or one of my contemporaries, your punishment shall be the severest I can find, if I’m the judge, and I’m sure it will be severe if any other judge is responsible,” he said.
“I hardly know anything about soft security, so if you want to do something that will land you in one of Her Majesty’s prisons, I’m always willing to accommodate you.”
When the jury did return to the courtroom, Mr Justice Greaves promised he would request greater security measures — both visible and less visible.
The following morning, additional uniformed officers were seen in and around the building.
The increased police presence remained constant throughout the rest of the trial, with four officers flanking the courtroom doors during yesterday’s verdict.
Following the conclusion of the trial, Ch Insp Pedro said the police always work to increase security in cases when it could be an issue.
“We risk assess each case on a case-by-case basis and obviously what we have seen is some cases seem to generate more attention than others,” he said.
“We do always have a stronger police presence in gang-type murder trials. I don’t think this in itself is any different.
“What we don’t want is any juror to feel intimidated when doing their civic duty. We want to reassure them that they are safe.”
