The conspiracy case against incarcerated Dancehall superstar, Adidja ‘Vybz Kartel’ Palmer and two co-accused has been dropped, for now anyway.
Palmer was charged alongside former Portmore Empire songstress,Vanessa Saddler, also known as Vanessa Bling or Gaza Slim as well as studio engineer, Andre ‘Pim Pim’ Henry with attempting to pervert the course of justice in relation to the Clive ‘Lizard’ Williams murder case. Palmer, along with three other men were convicted of Williams’ August 2011 murder last April. It is alleged that the three conspired to undermine the police’s investigation of the murder, with Saddler allegedly filing a false police report claiming she was robbed and gun-butted by Williams just five days after Kartel was charged for the killing in October 2011.
All three appeared at the Corporate Area Criminal Court on Wednesday when Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Paula Llewelyn entered a nolle prosecqui, according to reports, which officially informed the court that the Crown would no longer pursue the case.
This after Kartel’s attorney, Tom Tavares-Finson wrote a letter to the DPP days earlier asking for the trial to be discontinued based on the technical evidence presented in Kartel’s murder trial, while pointing out that the same witnesses from that trial were involved in this case and were giving contradicting statements.
Additionally, Tavares-Finson intimated that arguments the defense team plans to use in the conspiracy case are connected to transcripts from the murder trial and that without said transcripts, they could not properly cross-examine witnesses in the conspiracy trial.
However, the DPP pointed out that they will review the case following Kartel’s pending appeal of his murder conviction, which resulted in a life sentence without parole for 35 years, is settled and with then decide where or not to pursue the conspiracy case again.
Gaza Slim, in the meantime, will be allowed to travel again after having reclaimed her passport after the court granted her an order at the request of her lawyer, Pierre Rogers. Henry had long been freed on bail
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