Mother of Shineka Gray murder accused testifies

The St James Circuit Court today heard testimony from the mother of Gregory Roberts, the man on trial for the 2017 murder of schoolgirl Shineka Gray, as she spoke about the day her son was arrested on February 3 that year.

Giving her evidence-in-chief for the defence via the Zoom platform, the defendant's mother told the court that Roberts came to visit her at their St Thomas home on February 2, 2017, the day before his arrest, after she had previously called him to come and help with a sick relative.

“He came up in the night, and he came up by his brother's house and slept there till the next morning, and Greg said to carry him to the doctor. We went to the Princess Margaret Hospital, and then we left there and sat in the van, and Greg came in the van, and we just see a man and a woman come there and they opened the door,” the mother testified in response to questions from defence lawyer Leroy Equiano.

“The woman took my bag, and then the man took out a handcuff and put it on Greg's hand. Him say, 'Wha mi do? Wha mi do?'” the mother added, while noting that her son was subsequently taken to the Morant Bay Police Station.

But, during cross-examination, lead prosecutor Andrea Martin-Swaby pointed out that the witness never mentioned in her statement to the police about her previous attempts to contact Roberts.

“I put it to you that nowhere in your statement did you say that you called Gregory and told him to come to St Thomas because his brother was sick. There is nothing in the statement that you called your 'wash-belly' (last child) and told him to come to St Thomas because his brother was sick,” said Martin-Swaby.

“That was not in this one,” the witness replied.

Under re-examination by Equiano, the witness admitted that she could not recall how many statements she gave to the police concerning her son.

The trial continues later today, with another defence witness to be called to give evidence.

Roberts is accused of stabbing Gray, a 15-year-old student of the Green Pond High School in St James, to death on the night of January 29, 2017.

Gray's body was found three days later, on February 1, 2017.

- Christopher Thomas

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