Three weeks ago, we told you how American tour operator Bradley Paumen was ordered by the Supreme Court to pay his next-door neighbour, Michael Modiri 300 thousand dollars. Justice Shona Griffith has ruled that Paumen has been trespassing on his land to get to his Dark Knight Cave Tubing Tours - in which NICH is a partner.
Well, yesterday Paumen was again before the court - but this time in another matter, for allegedly trying to set up a hit on Modiri.
In the Belmopan Magistrate's Court - Chief Magistrate Ann Marie Smith ruled that Paumen must face a criminal trial in the Supreme Court for the four counts of Abetment to Murder. These are the charges he's facing for allegedly trying to orchestrate the murder of Modiri, his attorney and two of his employees.
Today, his attorney, Herbert Panton, told us that although the court says he must stand trial, the defense is prepared to poke holes in their case:
Herbert Panton, Attorney for Bradley Paumen
"Mr. Paumen was committed to stand trial in the Supreme Court yesterday. The Chief Magistrate who presided concluded that there was enough evidence before her, so Mr. Paumen was committed to stand trial in Supreme Court at the next session which I believe starts on the 22st June."
Daniel Ortiz
"What's your impression as an attorney and as his representation of the evidence that the prosecution provided to the court yesterday? Is it compelling in any way? Is there anything of concern you would want to address at some point?"
Herbert Panton, Attorney for Bradley Paumen
"Well the nature of a PI is that all that the magistrate is asked to look at is the evidence that the prosecution puts before the court. We on the defense side are not allowed to put in any evidence. But under section 44 of the indictable procedures act, you are given as defense council at the end of the PI to put into evidence any alibi - that is to say on a particular day when you claim this happen, it could not have happen because Mr. Paumen was elsewhere and that is the instance with the two particular occasions of the prosecution's star witness. He claims to have met with Mr. Paumen one morning and on Albert Street when on that very morning, Mr. Paumen was sitting in his attorney's office at Barrow and Williams meeting with his attorney. So he could never have met with the prosecution star witness. On the second occasion when the witness alleges that a second meeting happen with Mr. Paumen, Mr. Paumen was (and this supposedly happened at his property in Franks Eddy Village) not even in the Cayo District. He was down south dealing with some real-estate issues. Those issues weren't able to come up in the PI yesterday, but they certainly will be an integral part of our defense when we get to the supreme court."
Two of two of Bradley Paumen's employees, mechanic Lizburn Anderson and accountant Ian Skeen are also facing the charge of abetment to commit murder.
Paumen will have to face another preliminary inquiry next month along with Anderson, businessman Jahan Abadi of Belmopan, and Korean American Hyang Choing Park. They are jointly charged for the perversion of justice and the conspiracy to pervert justice. This is for allegedly planting an unlicensed weapon in Modiri's car.
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