Taxi driver pleads guilty to 2014 murder of Lusignan teen
Melroy Doris who is on remand for the murder of 19-year-old Lusignan, East Coast Demerara cosmetologist, Ashmini Harriram on Thursday pleaded guilty to the lesser offence of manslaughter. Doris appeared virtually before Justice Brassington Reynolds at the High Court in Georgetown.
Doris, who was represented by Stanley Moore, SC, pleaded guilty to the charge which stated that on July 10, 2014, in the county of Demerara, he unlawfully killed Harriram, called “Monisha Harriram.” State Prosecutor Tyra Bakker had initially indicted him for the capital offence of murder.
The confessed killer was further remanded to prison pending sentencing which is scheduled for March 25, 2021. According to the facts of the matter, on the day in question, Harriram and her cousin were walking along Lusignan Public Road when they saw a burgundy motorcar, PRR 8370 parked along the said road.
According to the prosecutor, a few minutes after, Harriram was shot to the head. Police investigations, she added, revealed that Doris was in possession of the car at the time the teen was shot. The prosecutor disclosed that Doris gave a caution statement in which he admitted that he was the getaway driver.
Doris was arrested for the killing on September 2, 2014.
The teenager’s cause of death was given as respiratory failure and gunshot injuries to the spine.
Another man, Lennox Wayne called “Two Colours” is also charged with the teen’s murder. He is still awaiting trial for the offence. The Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions said that on several occasions, Wayne indicated that he was desirous of pleading guilty to the lesser offence; he, however, changed his decision.
In the meantime, Wayne has filed a constitutional motion in which he is, among other things, asking for a permanent stay of the murder charge against him. In the motion, Wayne is contending that his right to a fair trial within a reasonable time has been infringed due to the delay in his retrial.
Wayne and Doris were first tried for the offence in 2017. That matter ended in a hung jury. As such, the trial judge ordered a retrial for both of them. The motion comes up for hearing on March 23, 2021, before Justice Navindra Singh at the High Court in Demerara.
