Judge shocked as accused shot dead

Before adjourning the case, Carmona then told the other three accused to be extremely careful.

On October 3, Andrew Skinner, Natalie Turner, Atiba Samuel, and Abby Johnson, appeared before Carmona in the Port-of-Spain Fourth Criminal Court charged with possession of marijuana for the purpose of trafficking.

They were all represented by Theodore Guerra SC.

The case was put off to October 4 for the judge to deal with the question of bail. On that day, Carmona granted bail to the accused. Hours later, however, Andrew Skinner was dead. Skinner, 44, alias "Noon" of Quarry Street, Diego Martin, was shot dead at the corner of St Lucien Road and the Diego Martin Main Road.

Skinner was killed while his four-year-old son sat in the back seat of his car.

When the matter was called yesterday, Guerra told the judge that one of his clients had been killed. This took Carmona by surprise.

"It was just last week. He was here before me and he got bail," the judge said as he looked at the other three accused in the dock.

He told them to be careful as they left the courtroom. Hearing was then adjourned to November 21. Carmona also noted that quite recently, as he was about to sentence a man found guilty of having an incestuous relationship, he learnt that the man had died of a heart attack.