Murder accused admits to stabbing his brother 4 times

DEAF MUTE, murder accused Bharath Mansingh, yesterday admitted to stabbing his brother four times to the neck and back during an altercation in November 1999, at the family’s St John’s Road, St Augustine home. Bharath appeared before High Court judge Melville Baird in the Port-of-Spain Second Criminal Court charged with murdering his brother, Mukesh Mansingh, on November 27, 1999. At the start of the day’s proceeding yesterday, Bharath told the court, through State-assigned interpreter Sharon Tardieu that he would take the stand to testify in his own defence. In his evidence in chief, Bharath told the court that he had gone to visit his family on the day of the incident. Describing himself as a non-violent person, Bharath told the court that he stabbed his brother Mukesh because Mukesh was very angry and violent towards him. He also testified that on the day of the incident, he saw his brother choking his father and tried to pull Mukesh away but could not do so. He said he tried to make them stop by using his voice and sign language. Defence attorney Israel Khan SC assisted the court by allowing his client to demonstrate the method he used to try to stop the struggle between his father and brother.

Asked if he had received any injuries during the incident, Bharath said that his brother had slashed him on his hand with a knife and he received nine stitches to close the wound. He told the court that he felt that his life was in danger and so when he got the knife away from Mukesh, he stabbed him three times to his neck and once in the back with it. He said even then he felt that his life was in danger. Under cross-examination by State attorney Althea Alexis, Bharath admitted that prior to the incident in November, his brother angered and frustrated him. He said that he had moved out of the family’s home in St Augustine because of Mukesh. However, he denied that Mukesh had made him angry on the day of the incident, or that he was angry when he stabbed him. Asked if he had stabbed Mukesh 11 times, Bharath said he did not know. Under cross-examination, Bharath also testified that he gave the police a statement with the assistance of Debra Mason and that she read it back to him. He said the statement was signed by both himself and his mother but that it was not entirely true and correct. The State attorney suggested that he told the police that, “while he and Mukesh were fighting, their father was trying to pull him away from Mukesh and could not pull him away, so his father left,” however, he denied this. Defence attorney Israel Khan then informed the court that the defence had presented all their evidence to them and closed its case. Both attorneys then presented their closing addresses in which they reminded the jury to look carefully at the evidence presented before them in the matter and to make their decision based solely on the facts. The matter continues on Wednesday.