Two freed of shooting charge

TWO St Joseph men yesterday heaped praises on God and their attorneys following their acquittal of attempted murder and wounding with intent charges. A nine-member jury deliberated for less than an hour before returning not guilty verdicts in favour of Ryan Charles and Michael Mahase. The two men were on trial before Madame Justice Alice Yorke Soo Hon at the Port-of-Spain Second Criminal Court charged with attempting to murder Joseph Noriega and wounding him with intent. Noriega was shot in the waist and back on the evening of April 7, 2001, while he was outside Felix Bar in Maracas, St Joseph. According to Noriega’s evidence, he was sitting outside the bar eating chicken, when the duo approached him.

He said Mahase was instructed by Charles to shoot him and, as he turned to run, he was shot in the waist. He was subsequently shot in the centre of his back, he said, before falling into a nearby drain. In his defence, however, Charles claimed Noriega had been shot by an unknown masked gunman. Mahase insisted his involvement was a case of mistaken identity. As they were leaving the Hall of Justice yesterday, the men paid tribute to God for allowing justice to prevail and thanked their attorneys for their “dedication” in their defence. Charles was represented by attorney Evans Welch, while attorney Ulric Skerritt appeared for Mahase. The State was represented by attorneys Cheron Raphael and Candia James.