'Zekes' anticlimax - Sentencing put off till May 30
May 17, 2006
THE PRECINCTS of the Supreme Court were transformed into a war zone yesterday as security forces swooped down ahead of the expected sentencing of well-known Matthews Lane area leader Donald 'Zekes' Phipps.
Sentencing was, however, put off until May 30, much to the disappointment of some policemen and passers-by, drawn by the intrigue, who stopped to find out the double-murder sentence.
Shortly after Phipps, 48, appeared in the Home Circuit Court under tight security, Senior Deputy Director of Public Prose-cutions Paula Llewellyn informed the court that Justice Horace Marsh was unavailable.
Justice Marsh, who presided at the trial, has been acting on the Court of Appeal Bench since last month .
The adjournment was granted by Justice Basil Reid.
Yesterday was the second time that an adjournment was granted. On the first occasion, defence lawyers asked for an adjournment to call character witnesses.
Phipps was convicted in the Home Circuit Court last month of the murder of Rodney Leroy Farquharson and Dayton Williams, both of Bayshore Park, east Kingston.
The burnt bodies with gunshot wounds to the heads were found in an open lot on Rose Lane, downtown Kingston, on April 15, last year....
Author: Barbara Gayle
Source: Jamaica Gleaner
