A man convicted of murder has been given the green light to appeal his case before the Privy Council in London.

Wolda Gardner was jailed for the premeditated murder of Malcolm Augustus in 2012 and using a firearm to commit an indictable act.

He argued in the Court of Appeal that his conviction was unconstitutional because the jury selection process had breached his right to a fair trial.

The Court of Appeal struck down his case last November, but he subsequently sought leave to appeal its decision at the Privy Council.

In its decision, the court found that there were some “genuinely disputable issues” in the judgment so it would be wrong to refuse leave to appeal.

Gardner was sentenced in July 2015 to 20 years behind bars for the murder of Mr Augustus, who was shot dead near Wellington Back Road in St George's on Christmas eve 2012.

Police found a mobile phone with Gardner's DNA in the area of the shooting, along with a hat belonging to a second man, who was cleared of charges in connection with the shooting.

They also discovered a series of short phone calls and messages between the two men on the evening of the murder. Gardner said the calls were in relation to Christmas hampers.

Gardner said he was in the area when the shooting took place and that he had heard a scuffle and gunshots but was not involved in the fatal attack.

However, he was found guilty by a majority verdict of 11-1.

He unsuccessfully appealed the case in 2017, and in 2019 the Privy Council in London declined to hear the matter, saying there was “no risk” a serious miscarriage of justice had occurred.

Gardner launched another appeal effort on the basis that his conviction was unconstitutional because the jury selection process had breached his right to a fair trial.

While the courts had previously ruled that exceptional circumstances were required for such an appeal to be successful in the Court of Appeal, Gardner argued that the language of Section 15 of the Constitution would allow a retroactive application to the Supreme Court.

While Gardner applied to the Supreme Court under Section 15, Chief Justice Narinder Hargun found that any appeal should go to the upper court — and that the same exceptional circumstances test would apply in both courts.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the case last November.

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