Coombs to take the stand in Williams case

President of the St Vincent and the Grenadines Football Federation (SVGFF) Venold Coombs will testify in the Burton Williams court case, on Monday, at the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court.{{more}}

His son, defence counsel Andreas Coombs, will call his father to the witness stand along with Lincoln Prescott, to give testimony in a case in which Williams is facing charges of attempted damage to property and that within the precincts of the House of Assembly he behaved in a manner in which a breach of peace was likely to be occasioned on January 28, 2011.

As the marathon case continued on Tuesday, October 9 at the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court, Williams remained adamant that he did not use a barricade to ram the main gate that leads to the Parliament, but rather was persuading others not to do so.

He is also accused of attempting to damage property.

After crown counsel Colin John, under cross-examination, showed Williams photographs of himself allegedly attempting to ram the gate, Williams said it was a still photograph and could not point to any continuous action.

“I let go of the barricade and went to the gate,” Williams testified.

“Based on your observation of the photo, are you pushing in the same direction the person in the polo shirt is pushing?” asked John.

“No! as a matter of fact, I was not pushing; I was pulling,” Williams replied.

Williams also said he “did not agree” with John when it was put to him that he did not try to restrain other persons allegedly ramming the gate and that it was he (Williams) who rammed the gate.

However, when asked if he was successful in restricting them from ramming the gate, Williams said, “When I let go, I went forward to the gate. I would say yes. My recollection is no one came forward with the barricade. I spoke to them and they put down the barricade,” Williams told the court.

According to Williams, he had to a certain degree of “influence” over the crowd.

Detective Corporal Wilma Black-Williams and Ornal Jacobs testified earlier in the trial that they saw Williams and others using a barricade to ram the gate. Jacobs told the court that he pointed his pistol at the persons who were using the barricade to ram the gate.

Willams said Jacobs only pointed the gun at him after persons put down the barricade.

“You didn’t tell the police you were the peacemaker here and you were trying to control the crowd?” John asked.

Williams said no.

“What Sergeant Jacobs said in court is the truth?”

Williams replied, “I can’t determine if what he said was the truth,” adding that he and Jacobs, who is also his cousin, had no animosity between each other before the alleged incident.

Jacobs, in his testimony, told the court that representative for Central Kingstown, NDP parliamentarian St Claire Leacock came to the scene and spoke to the protesters.

“They then calmed down, placed the bars on the ground and walked away.”

“Did Mr Leacock quiet the crowd?” John asked.

“I played a role in pacifying the commotion that was going on in front of the gate…,” Williams said in reply.

“Do you know storming of parliament is a breach of the peace?”

“I don’t know the legal aspect of it,” the former parliamentarian said.(KW)