The ex-girlfriend of a father accused of murdering his son told the Grand Court he confessed to the crime and told her he did it to teach his son a lesson.
Giving evidence via video link, Nikkieta Ebanks told the court of a string of violent encounters she had with the defendant, Roger Davard Bush, in the weeks leading up to the shooting death of Shaquille Bush.
Shaquille Bush was shot 15 times outside his home in West Bay shortly after 5pm on 12 Nov. 2019. The prosecution said he died on the spot after being shot in the back of the head and multiple times in the torso. He was 24 years old.
Ebanks, 33, told the court that, roughly one month before the fatal shooting, Roger Bush, 47, attacked her over rumours that she was having an affair with his son, Shaquille.
“The rumours were that Shaquille Bush was the real father of [my young daughter], and she looked like him,” said Ebanks. “Roger was upset because of the rumours, and I told him it was not true and that it could not have been possible.”
Just before and after the shooting
Ebanks told the court that minutes before the shooting, she was on her way to see Roger Bush at the Miss Daisy Lane yard, when he called her and told her to go to her cousin’s house for a while.
“While I was at my cousin’s house, I got a call from him saying to come and pick him up now,” Ebanks said. “He sounded agitated, and was very serious.”
She added, “When I picked him up, he was sweaty and aggressive and was coming out of the bush.”
The shrublands that Ebanks referred to are what prosecutors say Roger Bush used to leave the murder scene undetected.
The court heard that Bush then ordered her to drive to the beach where he threw his clothes into the sea “and returned to the car naked”.
Phone records show that, a few minutes later, Ebanks received three calls informing her about the shooting, along with the names of three suspects – one of whom was Roger Bush.
“When he heard his name called, he told me to stop the car, he got out and ran off,” she said.
Ebanks claims Bush confessed
Ebanks said the next time she saw Bush was some time later, in another vehicle and fully dressed.
“He came out and I could see a silver [or] chrome handgun, and got into the back seat of my cousin’s car, ” said Ebanks.
The court heard that he told Ebanks and her cousin to go to her cousin’s house and it is there that she said Bush confessed.
“When I asked him about the shooting, he said he had to teach Shaquille a lesson,” said Ebanks. “When I started crying, he asked ‘why was I crying for my man?’ that being Shaquille.”
‘Fictitious’ narrative
Attorney Oliver Blunt, QC, who represents Roger Bush, refuted Ebanks’ evidence as an attempt to incriminate Bush.
“This is part of a totally fictitious attempt to by you, and those who support you, to blame Mr. Roger Bush for the killing of his own son,” said Blunt. “None of this happened, you are making this up to form a motive, there was not sexual jealousy.”
While cross-examining Ebanks, Blunt told the court, “There is no secret that Mr. Bush made his living as a drug dealer selling ganja, and there was no malice between him and Shaquille Bush.”
Pointing to an interaction between the father and son the night before, Blunt said it was clear that both men were on good terms.
“The night before Shaquille’s death, he stopped you and Roger, approached the car and asked for a draw of weed,” said Blunt. “Why would Shaquille do this if both men were not on speaking terms?”
Turning his attention to the paternity rumours, Blunt asked Ebanks, “If what you are saying about the rumours are true, and Roger Bush had a problem with them, why did he not simply pick up the phone, give him a ring and ask him directly?”
When Ebanks replied, “I have no idea,” Blunt replied, “That’s because this is all a lie.”
Bush denies the allegations and the case resumes on Thursday.
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