Omar Collymore questioned about investing in ex-girlfriend’s business while companies with wife were in debt

Omar Collymore this morning disclosed that he had invested a total of $3 million in an ice-cream company for his ex-lover while admitting that he was told by his wife two months before her death that their businesses as a couple were "neck-high" in debt.

At the same time, he admitted that he would have collected about $76 million from his wife's two insurance policies in the event of her death.

The 41-year-old Barbados-born businessman is accused of orchestrating the murder of his wife Simone Campbell-Collymore to benefit from her two insurance policies.

One of the policies was for $80 million on which Collymore was a 70 per cent beneficiaries and another was for $21 million on which he was the sole beneficiaries.

Questioned by prosecutor Andrea Martin-Swaby whether their businesses were in debt Collymore said that was what his wife had said.

The 32-year-old businesswoman, who was shot and killed outside her Forest Ridge apartment complex in St Andrew on January 2, 2018, along with taxi driver Winston Walters, was heard in  voice messages played earlier in the trial discussing the companies financial challenges in October 2017.

Collymore was then questioned about financial assistance given to his lover, a gym trainer, and he divulged that he had given her $3 million to invest in her company over time.

He also admitted that he had asked her back for the money in 2017 but that she told him that would not be possible and that he never got back any of the money.

The woman, who previously testified that she ended their three-year-old affair two months before the murder of Collymore's wife, also shared that she started the ice cream business with Collymore and his friend, but that both men later pulled out before the business opened.

The woman had also denied benefiting financially from the relationship, however, admitted that Collymore had been paying her rent and that he had taken her on overseas trips, including to Miami, where they stayed at the couple's house.

But when pressed about how much Collymore had invested in her business, the witness maintained that she could not recall the amount, or could she recall the amount that she placed in the business or the amount of money she spent to buy equipment or pay rent.

The business, which started in 2016, was wound up in June 2108 according to the witness, who told the court that she still could not recall how much was invested.

Meanwhile, the prosecutor also cross-examined Collymore about the contractor who he claimed had threatened his wife.

Collymore testified yesterday that his wife told him that the contractor who was building their home had threatened her, and that they had several conversations about it.

But he later agreed with the prosecutor that he never mentioned the contractor or his threats in the first statement to the police.

The prosecutor further highlighted that he also did not mention the man in the second statement, instead he indicated that he did not know of any reason why someone would want to kill his wife.

"But six years later you are coming to say Barry threatened Simone," Martin-Swaby said.

Collymore however said it was a lapse in memory when asked if that wouldn't have been important information to share with the police.

Collymore is on trial for the double murder in the Home Circuit Court, along with Michael Adams, Dewayne Pink, and Shaquille Edwards.

- Tanesha Mundle

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