–prosecutor tells jury in closing arguments
-careless words don’t add up to intent, defence argues
After two weeks of explosive testimony linking the Guyana Government to confessed drug trafficker Roger Khan, the trial of his former lawyers closed and the prosecution charged that one of them, Robert Simels was aware of Khan’s role in the murders of talk show host Ronald Waddell and boxing coach Donald Allison.
While defence counsel Gerald Shargel contended that the case against his clients Simels and Arianne Irving were just about words but no crime, Prosecutor Steve D’ Allessandro argued that a “licence is not a licence to break the law!” According to a Capitol News’ report the prosecutor told the jury that the actions of the two defendants were so outrageous it appeared that the rules did not apply to them and that they stopped being criminal defence attorneys and became criminals by trying to shut up witnesses, by trying to push the actions of their former client Roger Khan. But Shargel said that it is a defence lawyer’s obligation to interview witnesses and he said words, even careless words, do not indicate intent to commit a crime.
Simels and Irving are facing several witness tampering charges. Simels is also charged with alleged exporting from Guyana to the US the cellular intercept equipment allegedly used by Khan for surveillance here. The trial has seen Selwyn Vaughn, confessed member of the ‘Phantom gang’-which the prosecution said was a band of killers headed by Khan-testify among other things that Khan had met with Minister of Health Dr Leslie Ramsammy on two occasions and that he himself had met the minister following Khan’s incarceration in the US. Vaughn, who has been paid by the prosecution, had also said that Khan ordered the killing of activist Ronald Waddell. The court was also told that the Guyana Government purchased the intercept equipment from UK-based from Smith Myers, through an outlet in the US. One of the company’s executive, Peter Myers, testified to this effect. Both the government and Dr Ramsammy have vehemently denied these claims.
‘Discredit’
In his submissions yesterday, Shargel attempted to discredit Vaughn and questioned if Simels thought so highly of the witness then why did he drop several of the ideas he offered and why did he not consider him a witness. He continued that in the depositions that Simels wanted done in Guyana it was clear who he wanted on the stand as he believed that Khan was not guilty of the charges. The attorney named several persons, mostly former policemen all of whom the prosecution had argued were part of the ‘Phantom gang,’ who Simels wanted to testify. While one of them said he was unwilling to travel to the US the others said they were willing to travel to the country but that they had no visas. “Why would they want to do so?” Shargel asked the jury “if they all knew that they would be arrested as killers, drug dealers and thugs.”
He told the jury that Khan was not a rogue but rather was doing eavesdropping on behalf of the Guyana Government and that it was evidence of innocence not guilt. Khan, he said, was seen as a “hero” in Guyana for dealing with criminal elements here.
‘Gang leader’
The jury heard another side of the story from Prosecutor D’Alessandro, who painted a picture of Khan as the head of a violent drug ring in Guyana, where he controlled the ‘Phantom gang.’ He said they were all involved in narcotics trafficking, kidnapping, murders and other violent acts. He argued that based on the evidence presented in court, Simels was the driving force in this part of the conspiracy to obstruct justice and tamper with witnesses. After all, he said, it was Simels who took and carried messages to and from the boss Roger Khan and made sure that the messages got to Khan’s gang members in Guyana and the US. And he said the jury must not consider that Irving, Simels’ associate, was merely doing her job as she made choices to participate in the obstruction of justice and import eavesdropping equipment.
The prosecutor once again insisted that Khan led a violent narcotics ring that gunned down its opponents like “dogs,” including the Buxton gang. He said the evidence indicated several former policemen and an accused drug trafficker wanted in the US, all of whom he named, were all part of that gang and Simels knew all of them. “These guys are killers, executioners but Simels could not say that on that stand,” he told the jury. He then displayed a directory the agents seized from Simels’ which listed the email address of one of the men as the ‘silent assassin.’ “What kind of email address is that?” he asked.
From the evidence he said it was clear that Simels knew about Khan’s involvement in the murders of Allison and Waddell and he replayed portions of the tapes the jury had already heard. He asked the jury to consider why Simels would be on tape discussing with Vaughn, murders and not tell Vaughn that it was wrong.
However, Shargel in rebuttal said lawyers engage in talk with witnesses all the time but it is the lawyer who ultimately decides what is going to be presented at trial.
Today prosecutor Morris Fodeman will rebut the defence’s closing arguments.
Khan was also charged with witness tampering but earlier this year he pleaded guilty to that, drug trafficking and gun running charges.
