Court hears — Witness refused to take lie detector test

THE STATE’S MAIN witness in the Clint Huggins murder trial, Swarsatee “Sattie”  Maharaj, refused to take a polygraph or lie detector test offered by officers attached to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), according to Police Superintendent Stephen Quashie, during his cross-examination yesterday.

Quashie testified that the FBI conducted polygraph testing of witnesses in the murder investigation, and when approached Sattie declined to take the lie detector test. He also informed the court that the test is done voluntarily. Sattie had earlier testified that her former common-law husband Leslie Huggins had shot and murdered Clint Huggins with the assistance of Arnold Huggins and Junior Phillips on February 20, 1996 along the Uriah Butler Highway in the vicinity of Mt. Hope. She also testified that Leslie was supposed to collect $3 million for the murder.

The trio appeared before High Court Judge Alice Yorke-Soo Hon in the Third Assizes for the murder of Clint Huggins. Phillip is defended by Osbourne Charles SC and Christlyn Moore, Leslie is represented by Keith Scotland and Dawn Mohan, while Arnold is defended by Ian Stuart Brook. The State is represented by Wayne Rajbansie and Natasha George. During cross examination Quashie stated that he had received oral information that checks of Clint’s beeper revealed he had received a message from Sattie Maharaj on the day of his murder. He also testified that he had known that Clint had left the safe house on the Saturday night — either the 17 or 18 February 1996 — and that he was kept under surveillance at Teteron. He further stated that if Clint decided to leave protective custody there was nothing the soldiers could have done to arrest him or keep him in custody since he was not a prisoner.

Quashie also testified that on February 23, 1996 he executed a warrant to search Phillips’ home for certain items which included arms, ammunition, items of clothing and a knife. He stated that when he asked Phillips for the clothes he was wearing on February 19, he was handed a turquoise jersey, a pair of jeans and a blue and white sneakers. However he could not say if the clothes had been washed. Quashie also testified that Phillips gave a voluntary statement at the station on November 6, 1997.

At this point Charles put it to Quashie that the accused never gave him a statement on November 6. However Quashie said that he did give a statement. He also put it to him that he misrepresented the judges’ rules by refusing to let the accused read the statement over carefully, that he was bundled into a vehicle and taken to the country side for a ride and no area was pointed out as the spot where the ignition keys for the Laurel and the murder weapon was thrown. However Quashie said that everything that he had testified to was the truth. Quashie also testified that FBI Officer Leslie Wamkoo had dusted and found some fingerprints on the burnt out Laurel car in which Huggins body was found, but none of the prints matched Phillips’.