Exactly one week after the brutal murder of Dr. Colin Roach, who was found in a pool of blood at his Duke Street, Kingston office, two teens were on Tuesday remanded to prison for the capital offence.
Hilton Oliver Junior Franklin, 19, of Best Village, West Coast Demerara, and Lenrick Mosai Byass,18, of Good Intent Village, West Bank Demerara. appeared before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court.
Particulars of the charge alleged that on November 2 the duo murdered Dr. Roach during the furtherance or course of a robbery.
The defendants were not required to enter a plea to the charge and were remanded to prison until November 30. They were represented by attorneys Dexter Smartt and Shercola Exeter.
The News Room had reported that on the night of Tuesday, November 2, that Dr. Roach was found in a pool of blood at his Duke Street, Kingston, Georgetown office by two of his employees.
Last Friday, Franklin was arrested in Berbice while attempting to flee to Suriname. Franklin reportedly claimed that he killed the doctor because he (Roach) made advances at him.
But his accomplice, Byass, who was arrested hours later, told police that he had planned to rob the doctor days before. The money would have been used to buy a car.
They only got US$600 and two gold rings after Dr. Roach was bludgeoned to death with a metal object allegedly by Franklin.
After murdering Roach, the teens removed the DVR that contained the surveillance footage. They then escaped with the doctor’s cellphones and his AUDI SUV, which was found abandoned two days later in Schoonard, West Bank Demerara.
Two of Roach’s employees who were also arrested during the investigation have been released.
