Joseph Melville v The State
| Jurisdiction | Trinidad & Tobago |
| Judge | A. Yorke-Soo Hon, JA,M. Holdip, JA,R. Boodoosingh, JA. |
| Judgment Date | 02 September 2021 |
| Neutral Citation | TT 2021 CA 41 |
| Docket Number | Crim. App. No. P016 of 2018 |
| Court | Court of Appeal (Trinidad and Tobago) |
IN THE COURT OF APPEAL
A. Yorke-Soo Hon, JA
M. Holdip, JA
R. Boodoosingh, JA
Crim. App. No. P016 of 2018
Cr. No. 56 of 2003
Mr Evans B. Welch Jr. and Ms Evanna Welch appeared on behalf of the Appellant
Mr Travers Sinanan and Ms Tricia Hudlin-Cooper appeared on behalf of the Respondent
Joint Judgment delivered by: A. Yorke-Soo Hon, JA; M. Holdip, JA and R. Boodoosingh, JA.
. In July 2001, Joseph Melville (“the appellant”) was charged for attempted murder, conspiracy to murder, kidnapping and assault occasioning actual bodily harm and convicted on 15 March 2004 of all counts. On appeal, a retrial was ordered and at the retrial, he was again convicted for the said offences. On 28 July 2017 he was sentenced to a term of 19 years imprisonment with hard labour for attempted murder; 9 years for conspiracy to murder; 14 years for kidnapping and 4 years for assault. It is against these convictions that he now appeals.
. The appellant was an attorney at law whose office was located at Suite 9, 18–20 Pembroke Street, Port of Spain (“the office”). Patricia Cox, the virtual complainant (“the VC”) was his secretary and was employed with him between February 1997 and June 2001.
. Mrs Veronica Rostant (“Mrs Rostant”) and the appellant were friends and she knew the VC well. In 1999, Mrs Rostant retained him to look after her deceased son's estate consisting of a house and insurance monies in the sum of approximately $146,000. On a date in 2000, she went to the appellant's office and spoke with him. He assured her that the money was there and available to her if she needed anything. On 26 June 2001, she went to the appellant's office in the company of PC Frank and enquired about payment and the appellant told her to return on 29 June 2001.
. On the morning of 28 June 2001, the VC arrived at the office and met one Jason Holder (“Holder”) whom she had seen twice in the preceding days. She first saw him on 24 June 2001, around 1:00 am at the appellant's home when she went to return a vehicle, which she had borrowed from him. She also saw him on 25 June 2001, when she arrived at the office, Holder was seated on the appellant's chair and the appellant was not there.
. Sometime in the afternoon of 28 June 2001, the appellant arrived at the office. He and Holder then left around 2 pm. The appellant drove to Bournes Road, St James where he remained seated in the vehicle and Holder exited and spoke to one Ainsley Alleyne (“Alleyne”), who was known to Holder. Holder informed Alleyne that the man in the vehicle was a lawyer who was offering $40,000 to kill a woman. He told him of a plan which involved pretending to take the woman to collect some documents, but really intending to kill her. Alleyne then came to the car and spoke to the appellant about an inheritance matter and the appellant replied, “You know, time is of the essence, we will deal with that later.” Holder and the appellant then drove off but later returned to Bournes Road where Alleyne spoke with the appellant who asked him to get another vehicle and they went in search of same. Alleyne eventually spoke to one Hilton Winchester (“Winchester”) and informed him of the plan. Alleyne sat with Winchester in his vehicle and they followed the appellant to the vicinity of Park and Pembroke Streets where Alleyne entered the appellant's vehicle and the appellant told him about the plan. The appellant indicated that the VC was discussing his business with a police officer named Frank and that the Fraud Squad was getting too close to him and that “ she had to come out of it”. The appellant told Alleyne not to enter the vehicle until the woman got inside and that “ it was supposed to be a skilful operation. She mustn't rise back up at all”.
. The appellant then proceeded to telephone the VC at the office around 3 pm. In the presence of Alleyne, he told her that he wanted her to go to the home of a client to collect some documents and to bring them back to the office. He instructed her to go to the corner of Park and Pembroke Streets where she would meet Holder and another person in a vehicle and that they would take her to the client. Although the appellant's request for her to collect documents from a client's home was normal, it was unusual for her to do so in the company of persons unknown to her. She left the office and proceeded as directed. As she approached the vehicle she observed that one man was seated in the driver's seat and that Holder exited the vehicle and motioned to another man, whom she later learned was Alleyne. As Alleyne drew closer, she observed the appellant on the other side of the street approaching their direction. When he arrived he said to Holder, “ look at the time, go handle your scene” and told the VC to go with the men and to return the documents to him.
. Around 3 pm, Zedekiah Aaron, the building's watchman who was stationed at the front of the building, had noticed the VC leaving the building and proceeding upwards along Pembroke Street. Around 15–30 minutes later, the appellant arrived and entered the building. Sometime between 4:30 pm and 5:00 pm the appellant exited the building with some files in his hand and walked down Pembroke Street. He gave the files to a man before returning to the office. Around 5:30 pm, the appellant exited his office and enquired from Zedekiah whether the VC left and he replied that she did and that she walked in an upward direction along Pembroke Street.
. The VC together with Alleyne and Holder entered the vehicle. Holder sat in the front passenger seat, whilst the VC and Alleyne sat in the rear passenger seats and they proceeded to drive out of Port of Spain, stopping only at a gas station at Richmond Street. The VC was not familiar with the area because she lived in Sangre Grande. She saw a sign labelled Fort George and asked if anyone lived there, but no one replied. As the vehicle proceeded she said, “We passed one house on the left. I was feeling very funny”. Alleyne then grabbed the VC by her neck and pulled her lower down on the seat. She started to struggle and Alleyne unbuttoned the VC's shirt and started sucking her breast and unzipped her pants. While this was happening Holder turned around and took 2 gold chains, a ring and $70.00 from her. Alleyne and Holder told her that they were murderers.
. The vehicle came to a stop and Alleyne exited it and told Holder to lock the doors. He went to see if the “coast was clear” before returning to the vehicle and dragging the VC out by her feet. He held her at the back of her pants and pulled her up the hill. Holder asked her about what she told Mrs Rostant and the police about the appellant and she said, “ I didn't tell Mrs Rostant and the police anything. All I knew is that Melville and Mrs Rostant was having some financial issue and he was given a deadline which was Friday 29th June 2001, to pay Mrs Rostant.” Holder then told her that the appellant paid him $1000 to kill her. The VC replied, “ If is money you want, I will give you $20,000 to spare my life.” After they passed a tower, they placed her to sit on a stone close to a precipice. Alleyne asked her why the appellant wanted her dead and she said that the appellant had taken $150,000 from one of his client's accounts and placed it into his account and that she knew about it.
. Whilst the VC was seated on the stone Holder grabbed a large stone on the ground and held it over her head saying that he was going to bash her head with it. He then turned to Alleyne and dropped the stone. He told Alleyne that he looked stronger and that he should strangle her instead. Alleyne replied saying, “ handle your business”. Whilst the men were deciding on how to kill her, the VC used the opportunity to throw herself down the hill. Holder quickly went after her and told Alleyne to meet him on the other side. Holder retrieved her but took her to a different spot. This caused Alleyne to lose contact with them and he eventually returned to the vehicle and he and Winchester left.
. Holder told the VC to remove her shirt and bra, which he used to tie her hands and feet. Her pants came off earlier while she was rolling down the hill. He tore off her underwear leaving her completely naked. He then went behind her and said that he was going to put her in a sleeper. He held her by her neck and she became unconscious.
. Ainsley Letren (“Letren”) was on the tower at Cumberland Hill, Fort George when he observed through his binoculars from a distance of approximately 300 feet a man (Holder) with his hands around a woman's neck. The woman was on the ground naked, her feet and hands were tied and she was struggling and trembling. Letren shouted out to the man to let go of the woman's head. Holder then left the woman and started to run up the hill towards him. Letren quickly ran down the tower, jumped on his motorcycle and drove away. He reported the incident to the police.
. The VC saw Holder running up the hill, but did not see Alleyne. She untied herself, climbed over the hill and hid. She then made her way through the forest.
. That night, Holder, Alleyne and the appellant met at the Guiaco gas station. They sat in the appellant's vehicle and reported back to him what had transpired with the woman. He drove into a dark street close by and stopped in the yard with a house. The appellant then took out some documents from the vehicle and told them to get rid of them so that he could account for where he was at that time. He asked them if they wanted to stay at that house until things “died down” but they declined the offer.
. On the morning of 29 June 2001, the appellant called Mrs Rostant to ask when she was coming to the office and she said around 10 am. He then went to her house and asked her when last...
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