Man accused of aggravated burglary says he spent day of alleged incident with girlfriend
A man accused of aggravated burglary told a jury that he spent the whole day with his girlfriend on the day of the alleged break-in.
Zywonde Lema, 20, told the Supreme Court yesterday that he was at the beach with his girlfriend before going to visit his mother and never visited the apartment alleged to have been broken into.
He added that, while he had wielded the knife that was later found in the apartment, he had left it with “associates” two days before the alleged incident and had not seen it since.
Mr Lema earlier pleaded not guilty to aggravated burglary, which was alleged to have happened at a Warwick home on November 13, 2020.
He said that his girlfriend, now the mother of his child, came to visit him at the beach near White Sands Road in Paget the day before the alleged break-in.
Mr Lema said that he was living in a “cement hut” on the beach at the time, but occasionally visited his mother or grandmother to take a shower and get food.
He added that his girlfriend stayed the night and spent much of the day with him before he caught the bus to his mother’s house.
Mr Lema admitted that the knife was his and that he used it to break up shatter – or cannabis resin – for personal use.
But he insisted that he left it with a former friend two days before the alleged break-in and had not seen it until April the following year during an interview with police.
He told the court: “They were some people I’d just met. Someone who just grew up with my family.”
Mr Lema said that he did not leave the knife at the Warwick residence or go anywhere near the apartment on the day it was alleged to have been broken into.
He added that he did not have a driver’s licence and could not have been spotted riding to the Warwick residence.
Mr Lema said that he did not have access to a motorcycle, although admitted that his mother did.
The trial continues.
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