Murder accused says teen charged at him after they exchanged words

Murder accused Anderson Rodney Omar Best told police that he stabbed 17-year-old Justin Trevor Jean twice after the teen charged at him during what was their one and only dispute.

That evidence was disclosed by Acting Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Dale Crichlow who read the dictated statement given by Best the day after Jean lost his life.

He was one of several witnessed called by Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions Alliston Seale to give evidence on the state’s behalf in the No. 2 Supreme Court on Thursday.

Best is on trial before a 12-member jury and Justice Randall Worrell charged with murdering 17-year-old Jean on August 30, 2011.

In his evidence, ASP Crichlow said he assisted with investigations into the stabbing death when he was attached to the Criminal Investigations Department at Oistins Police Station.

He said he was on duty on August 31, 2011 when then 28-year-old Best, a resident of Kings Court, Lodge Road, Christ Church, arrived at the police station accompanied by his mother and stepfather.

The accused, he said, was informed about the investigation and told of his rights and that he could contact an attorney-at-law.

“No. I [will] talk to you and tell you what happen,” was his reply.

ASP Crichlow said Best was told about the police information that he stabbed Jean twice about his body and he subsequently died in the backyard of a woman’s residence.

Best replied: “I get in a scene last night with a fella who pull a knife. I take the knife from he. He charge at me and I stab he.”

Asked what he meant by “scene”, he said: “I mean a fight.”

Before agreeing to dictate a written statement Best also said “me and he never had nothing” when asked whether he had a dispute with Jean before.

In his statement, the accused said he and some other people were socialising on the road in Kings Court when Jean walked through the middle of the group, “slow down and look in my face with he face vex”.

“I ask him why he looking at me so cruel like me and he in something. Me and you never had nothing, no exchange of words or nothing. . . ,” Best told police.

He said Jean cursed him and said, “If you was not looking at me, you wouldn’t know I looking at you”.

“I tell he ‘big man, you now walk through the middle of we and look in my face like something wrong; you could walk around’.  I then tell him I don’t want to get into anything with he, cause you can’t deal with me.”

The accused told police that he observed Jean had a cellular phone in his left hand and his right hand was in his pocket.

“I step back a little and he came forward to me like he want to fight. I did not move and he come pun me. I ask him what vibes he pun. He tek out a brown handle knife and we begin to struggle with one another in de road. We continue wrestling until we get up by he girl. I manage to get the knife out he hand and hold he telling he ‘big man why you don’t be cool’,” he continued, adding that he kicked off Jean and opened the knife.

According to Best, Jean charged at him and he stepped back and stabbed him.

“He stop and bore me again. I stab he a second time . . . . He ran off.

“I drop the knife . . . and he ran off down the bottom of the gap and went and shout my cousin Antone and tell him what happen. I stand there for a little while and breeze . . . ,” the accused told police.

Best said he subsequently went back out and “I hear de man dead. I tek up my bicycle and shift de place.”

ASP Crichlow said that police accompanied Best back to the scene of the incident but the knife was not found.

The officer said during the investigations he went on duty to the morgue where a post-mortem was conducted on the teen’s body.

He returned to the police station where he told the accused that Jean had died as a result of a stab wound he inflicted on his chest and he would be charged with the offence of murder.

“He made no reply,” ASP Crichlow said.

The officer was cross-examined by Best’s attorney Angella Mitchell-Gittens.