Three video clips of homicide detectives collecting key evidence in their investigation of the kidnap and murder of Vindra Naipaul-Coolman were shown yesterday in the trial of a dozen men accused of committing the crime.The clips were shown using a projector in the Port-of-Spain Second Criminal Court as Cpl Nigel Stephens, a camera operator with the police Audio Visual Unit, continued where he left off in his testimony, which began on Thursday.
One of the short clips detailed a police exercise in La Puerta Avenue, Diego Martin, on the morning of January 6, 2007–almost three weeks after Naipaul-Coolman was abducted from her Lange Park, Chaguanas, home.
Stephens served as narrator in the court, as he pointed out several pieces of evidence unearthed during searches of two adjoining buildings–a single-storey red brick house, where prosecutors allege that the former Xtra Foods chief executive was kept captive before being killed, and a two-storey home belonging to one of the accused men.The clips also showed a forested area overlooking the two buildings where police also found evidence.
Among the items shown in the clip were a pistol and magazine found in the two-storey house and a latex glove and ski mask found under a tree in the forested area.While leading Stephens through his evidence, special state prosecutor Gilbert Peterson asked Stephens to identify two men who appeared to be handcuffed and who appeared in the video.
The second clip, recorded by Stephens, which was also tendered into evidence yesterday, was recorded during a follow-up visit to the same area several months later, on May 9, 2007. In that clip, Stephens's colleagues were seen removing a circular object that was hidden in an oven in the kitchen of the red brick house. The same group of police were also seen searching another property in the area, although no evidence was shown being collected there.
The third clip, recorded three days later, showed a group of police hiking to another forested area on a hill, which Stephens said was about half a mile from the red brick house.The officers pointed to a square hole in the ground, where prosecutors claim Naipaul-Coolman was buried after being killed before her body was allegedly exhumed and disposed of.Stephens also captured images of a single leather boot, the blade of a short knife and a single latex glove found near the four-foot-deep hole.
The last clip also showed police making the downhill trek back to an area to the two houses, where they stopped near a small ravine and collected what appeared to be a pile of burnt clothing.It ended with Stephens highlighting a flight of stairs which he said he and his colleagues used to gain access to the area where they found the hole.Stephens completed his testimony yesterday, but could not be cross-examined by defence attorneys as Justice Malcolm Holdip adjourned the hearing shortly after midday.
The trial resumes on Monday.Before the court.