Tashieka Mair, Gleaner Writer

WESTERN BUREAU:

The absence of the main eyewitness yesterday, reportedly due to illness, halted the continuation of the preliminary enquiry against the four men implicated in the November 2006 massacre of a family in Retirement, St. James.

The case was adjourned in the Montego Bay Resident Magistrate's Court until July 19 for the eyewitness to continue testifying.

The accused men, SylvanGreen, Alroy Shaw, Ricardo Taylor and Rick Thorpe, were also ordered to remain in police custody.

The court was also informed that another witness in the matter only identified Green and Thorpe, whose attorneys were absent.

In light of the circumstances, defence attorneys Winston Douglas and Trevor Ho-Lyn, who represents Taylor and Shaw, respectively, agreed to the aforementioned court date.

Visit the scene

Mr. Ho-Lyn also mentioned that the prosecution and defence teams would have to visit the scene of the crime in order to get a better understanding of what might be outlined by the witnesses.

The victims killed in the attack were 43-year-old Lyris Ellis-Johnson, her 17-year-old daughter, Kaya Wilson, son Kirk Wilson, 19, and her stepson, 15-year-old Troy Johnson. Her husband and two sons, ages 14 and 10, were also shot and injured in the incident.

The police reported that about 10:00 p.m. on November 18, three gunmen kicked open the door to the Johnsons' residence as the family watched television. The men opened fire, hitting seven persons. Mrs. Ellis-Johnson's husband managed to chop one of the attackers on the leg.

The accused men were later arrested on November 20, 2006, after they were reportedly taken from a bus along the Rose Hall main road in St. James.