Huggins is now a free man.

Meade (left) and George pleaded guilty to some of the offences. Photo: VINO/file

Kareem Simon, who had pleaded guilty to aggravated burglary, is serving eight years. Photo: VINO/File

Before dismissing the case Justice Albert Redhead lamented that the trial was a waste of time and resources and chastised Crown Counsel Sarah Benjamin for that.

“I know the criminal law. I won’t say I know everything but if after 38 years I don’t know the criminal law now I will never know it. I indicated to you Miss Benjamin and the DPP that there was no evidence. I think it was a waste of public resources but you insisted on prosecuting, but prosecuting is your prerogative. I told you in the presence of learned counsel for the defence. It is a waste of my time, the jury time, and a waste of the steno typist’s time.”

Albeit, some of the evidence looked suspicious, the Judge pointed out that could not be deemed concrete evidence. Furthermore, he noted that none of the witnesses that took the stand could have identified Huggins.

Huggin’s lawyer Stephen Daniels, who made his no case submission a little after 1:30 p.m., bluntly stated that the circumstantial evidence put forward by the Crown was weak.

“I do submit that there is no direct evidence linking the defendant to the three men caught at the police station, and secondly the circumstantial evidence is weak. The only evidence the Crown is relying on is that the defendant was at Palm Road, seen socialising with them, gave Ramon a test drive, and was in the sports bar while two of the other men were playing pool. Taken as a whole the jury will be faced with a lacuna and having to fill in holes. They will be faced with a great difficulty. There is no evidence of him dropping them off, scaling the school yard fence. If you take the Prosecution case, there is no evidence that he was part of the plan, there is nothing before this court and I will urge you to uphold my no case submission, and acquit my client,” Mr. Daniels stated.

Leading the prosecution was Crown Counsel Sarah Benjamin who was assisted by Director of Public Prosecution Elizabeth Hinds.

On day one of the trial, Ms. Benjamin had explained to jurors that Mr. Huggins was charged with three offences – aggravated burglary, carrying an unlicensed firearm, and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

She told the nine member jury that while Mr. Huggins did not physically go into the Road Town police station himself on November 24, 2010, it did not make a difference because once it shows that they acted together in agreement, the defendant can be held liable for the crimes committed by the others.

The Crown counsel further contended that Huggins’ role was as the alleged getaway driver while the others entered the Road Town police station. She disclosed it is the Crown’s case that the defendant along with the other individuals planned to enter the police station and they did so being armed.

“Each had separate roles. But combined the job could not be completed, that is where Mr. Huggins came in,” she had told the Court.

Crown Counsel Benjamin noted that there are “too many pieces of the puzzle surrounding the RT burglary” which the defendant fit right into. And while she said Mr. Huggins may say its coincidence but she would say they are circumstantial evidence and when put together “form a picture”.

She had told jurors that they will hear from witnesses that the defendant allegedly socialized with the other individuals who were fingered in the attack couple hours before the event and also days before it occurred.

According to Ms. Benjamin, a person fitting Huggins’ description was seen running into the darkness where his car was seen by officers.

The evidence, according to the Crown Counsel, showed the three men entering the police station masked, wearing gloves, armed, had several plastic handcuffs among other things. It is alleged that they had a hand drawn map, as they made their way to the guard room where they dislocated a CCTV camera and assaulted PC Kevin Prince. The officer was allegedly struck in his head by one of the attackers and hit in his abdomen by another.

The men, who were armed with a glock, a crow bar and a knife, were caught disarmed, unmasked and taken into custody, according to Ms. Benjamin.

Attack captured on four cameras
The Crown’s first witness Sergeant Claude Rymer, who is attached to Road Town Police Station Communications unit, had testified that the Road Town Police Station had 13 cameras working with four capturing images of the attack.

Officer Rymer revealed that that some of the cameras were motion activated and footage reviewed were between midnight to 3 a.m. of November 24, 2010 – the day the incident took place.

The footage showed the men entering the Police station on one camera, another camera captured someone walking past pushing up the camera to the ceiling and another also showed the men entering, and officers responding.

Alleged accomplices pleaded guilty
Meanwhile, Huggins’ alleged accomplices Courtney Meade and Ramon George on May 8, 2012, pleaded guilty to aggravated burglary, while George pled guilty to carrying an unlicensed firearm. However, the duo pled not guilty to the assault occasioning actual bodily harm charge.

On the other hand, Kareem Simon, who had pleaded guilty to aggravated burglary last year, was given an eight year prison term by Justice Rita Joseph-Olivetti on April 3, 2012.