Ex-Girlfriend of Accused Testifies… As Slain Officer’s Murder Trial Continues
By Suelika N. Buchanan
(Basseterre; St. Kitts): Makenya Lawrence, commonly known as Makenya Lucas , was a very important witness in the trial of deceased Police Constable Delvin Nisbett, who was brutally gunned down on July 25th, 2004.
She was the eighth witness called to testify by the Prosecuting team, which is led by Sir Richard Cheltenham of Barbados.
Makenya revealed that on the day after Nisbett’s murder (the 26th of July), at around six in the morning, Romeo Cannonier, the accused in the trial, came to her home appearing nervous and frightened. She testified that she recalled Cannonier telling her that he had done something real bad.
“He told me that he had shot someone who was a Police officer, in Parsons, and he’s dead,” the witnessed continued.
Makenya disclosed that she asked Cannonier how he knew that the person was dead. “Because I did it, me and a partner of mines did it,” she quoted the accused as saying.
In relation to the “partner”, Makenya said that Cannonier did not disclose the identity of the other person.
At the time of the incident, the witness lived in a two bedroom home at Bird Rock which she rented, while she worked at the Oasis Sports Bar. Makenya also confirmed that she was intimate with the accused (Cannonier), and that he slept at her home most of the time.
~~Adz:Right~~ She said she asked him why he did it and he told her that the police officer had “roughed him up” when he was in prison. “And if you tell anyone, I will beat you up,” Makenya recalled Cannonier saying to her, during the conversation they had. Sir Cheltenham then proceeded to ask Makenya if she had any knowledge of the weapon the accused may have used. She told the court that Cannonier said that he had killed the police officer with a gun and that he had hidden it in some grass.
She also said that Cannonier revealed that he had taken some money off of the police officer. She further stated that the cash was in the sum of EC$600 and US$500. Further on in her testimony, Lawrence recalled that in previous conversation, Cannonier had asked her to get Michael Powell’s gun. Makenya, at that time, was also dating Michael Powell, who owned a licensed firearm. She noted that she told Cannonier that it was not right to take Powell’s gun and indicated that she never interfered with the firearm.
Makenya noted that Cannonier was persistent about acquiring Powell’s gun and he told her that he would break into Powell’s home and get it himself. She also recalled that some time after Cannonier told her he had the gun (Powell’s gun) but she never saw it.
In later testimonies by Police officers Derrick Boone and Diane Mills, the aforementioned gun was found at the home of one of Cannonier’s friends, Vincent Warner.
The gun and magazine were also brought into evidence and Michael Powell identified them as his and also provided a matching serial number for the weapon. Defence Counsel Hesketh Benjamin, in 45 minutes of cross examination, failed to shake Makenya from her testimony, in which she stated that Cannonier had indeed confessed to murdering Constable Nisbett to her.
During cross examination, Makenya confessed to dating both Powell and Cannonier at the same time. She noted that Powell did not know of Cannonier but Cannonier knew of Powell. Defence Counsel Benjamin then accused her of lying about Cannonier’s confessing the murder to her and proceeded to ask her if she was not upset with Cannonier at the time because she wanted him to pay her rent. “He told you no, he will not pay your rent, go look for your man Powell,” Benjamin was quoted as saying Makenya admitted to asking Cannonier to pay her rent and being upset when he said that he wouldn’t do it.
~~Adz:Left~~ “However, even after that he still came by my home,” she added, in an effort to show that the little disagreement did not end their good relations. “Didn’t you also tell Cannonier that if he didn’t pay your rent you would tell the police all sorts of things that were not true?” Benjamin asked.
Makenya answered with an emphatic “no.”
Benjamin then asked her if Powell usually paid her rent and if he gave her money. She answered both questions in the affirmative.
“What he gave you? Fives?” Benjamin asked.
“No… hundreds!” she responded.
Benjamin then drilled her about her decision to not inform Powell or the Police of what she knew after his gun went missing. In the redirect examination by Cheltenham, Lawrence said that the reason for not telling Powell about what Cannonier had said was because she did not want to get into “the middle of it and was scared for her life.”
Police Constable Calvin Greene also gave testimony.
He testified that on the night of the murder, Sunday, July 24th, he was at a bar in Parson Ground and was not on duty at the time. Greene said that around 10: 30 p.m. he was outside the bar, leaning on a car owned by his girlfriend’s mother, when he saw someone walking in his direction with no shirt on.
He said that the person flashed a light at him and he went back into the bar.
Greene then said he came back outside and observed the person washing their hands by a standpipe. “Wha happen? Wha happen? You want something?” Greene recalled the person saying to him before he turned off.
Greene said he recognized the person as someone from Parson’s Ground, known as “Buncome”, and later found out his real name, Romeo Cannonier. Elroy Wattley, another Police Constable, also gave evidence in relation to having contact with the accused after the murder.
Wattley said that he gave Cannonier a lift to Basseterre, from Dieppe Bay Primary School, at around 7 a.m., on Monday, July 26.
He said that he knew Cannonier for eight years and proceeded to tell the court what clothing he was wearing when he gave him the lift. Cannonier was wearing a short blue jeans and a dark coloured shirt.
The trial continues today Wednesday, Oct. 17.
