Clansman Gang Trial | Couple died before house torched, expert theorises
Published:Wednesday | February 2, 2022 | 12:12 AMTanesha Mundle/Staff Reporter
A forensic expert testified on Tuesday that the couple targeted by the Clansman-One Don Gang in a murder-arson in New Nursey, Twickenham Park, in 2017, died from gunshot wounds before their house was set on fire.
According to the pathologist, no soot was found in the victims’ tracheas “which more than likely implies that they were not alive at the start of the fire”.
Both victims were shot thrice by the hoodlums.
Cedella Walder was shot twice in her buttocks and once in her chest, while Jermaine Bryan was hit twice in his chest and once in his abdomen.
The expert witness further shared that the chest wound was fatal for Walder, as it damaged her lungs and heart, while Bryan died as a result of the multiple punctures to his lungs and heart.
Bryan, 25, and Welder, 27 – who was reportedly visiting his home for the first time – were allegedly shot and killed by reputed gang leader Andre ‘Blackman’ Bryan and his bodyguard, Tareek James, otherwise called ‘CJ’. The board house they were in was firebombed.
The closeness of the charred remains suggested that the couple had huddled amid the rubble caused by the early-morning September 8 deadly attack.
The witness, who conducted the couple’s autopsy on October 6, 2017, told the court that both were excessively burnt and could not be identified visually.
The court heard that the woman had more burn injuries than the man, as no blood was found in her body.
“His body was in a better condition than hers; both had burns, but he had more skin and less defects,” the witness stated.
The court also heard that Walder was shot from the back, while Jermaine was hit from the front.
Two former members of the One Don Gang, a splinter of the Clansman Gang, previously testified that Blackman had marshalled a large group of gangsters to the community in search of Bobo Spark.
The man in question was said to be a top shooter for Tesha Miller, the reputed leader of the Clansman faction.
Meanwhile, a detective sergeant who was the investigating officer in the murder of a Rastaman on Jones Avenue, St Catherine, said that one bullet fragment and 17 spent shell casings were found near the body, which was found lying in a pool of blood.
The police witness testified that she had also investigated the murder of a bus driver at the Spanish Town bus park in St Catherine.
Both victims were allegedly executed by the One Don Gang.
Bryan and 32 other alleged gang members are being tried on an indictment with 25 counts under the Criminal Justice (Suppression of Criminal Organizations) Act and the Firearms Act.