The Grand Court heard on Tuesday that the DNA found under the fingernails of a man who died of multiple stab wounds strongly pointed to the identity of his killer.
Candia James-Malcolm told a 12-strong jury that DNA from George Ian Duffell’s “bloody fingernails” had “revealed his killer”.
She said that defendant Lindsay Watler “was responsible for his death”.
James-Malcolm, the deputy director of public prosecutions, explained that DNA analysis had found that that material under Duffell’s fingernails contained DNA from someone else, as well as his own.
She told the jury that Duffell, known as Ian, was the victim of a brutal attack and was stabbed multiple times.
James-Malcolm, the deputy director of public prosecutions, said, “Two of these wounds would prove to be fatal – one to his neck and the other to the right side of his chest.”
She added, “This was indeed a vicious attack.”
Duffell suffered severe injuries in the yard of a house on Birch Tree Hill Road in West Bay on the night of 14 Oct. 2022 and died later in George Town Hospital, despite a desperate battle to save him.
James-Malcolm said that Watler had said in his first interview with police in connection with the killing that he had known Duffell for about six years and had had “an altercation” with him about six months before his death.
She added Watler had insisted he had not had any contact with Duffell on the day of his death and that the last time he had encountered him was six months before.
But James-Malcolm said, after the DNA tests came through, Watler was interviewed again and changed his story.
She told the jury, “The defendant was reminded of what he had said in his first interview and continued to deny he had any contact with the deceased, apart from some casual contact.”
James-Malcolm added, “He was then confronted with the DNA evidence and he was asked to explain how his DNA ended up under Mr. Duffell’s fingernails.
“He could provide no explanation as to why his DNA was there.”
But she said he had altered his original account and told police that he had tried to prevent a confrontation between Duffell and two other men on the same day he died.
But James-Malcolm said Watler had refused to give details of the incident.
The court heard earlier that police were called to a disturbance at Kelly’s Bar on Birch Tree Hill Road at about 9:30pm on the night of the death and told Duffell, who appeared to have been drinking, to leave.
Duffell eventually left, but police were called back to the bar about 45 minutes later when he returned.
Police officers said Duffell walked off in the direction of Stadium Road, where he was captured on a CCTV camera outside Captain Frank’s grocery store walking across the stadium car park, where he had stopped to talk to people in a silver Honda.
Sergeant Royal Brown added that he advised Duffell to go home and he walked off.
But he said he later got a 911 alert about a stabbing on Birch Tree Hill Road. Officers found Duffell in the yard of a house bleeding heavily.
Julet Facey, who had known Duffell for years, said she had visited Kelly’s that night and saw him talking to police.
She added she was on her way home on Birch Tree Hill Road at about 10:30pm and heard Duffell shouting for help.
Facey added she saw a man run away from the yard but said she did not get a good look at him.
She said Duffell, who was on the ground, moved his head to the side and she saw a massive wound to his throat and one to his side.
He was rushed to George Town Hospital, but pronounced dead at about 11:40pm.
Pathologist Dr. Shravana Jyoti, who carried out a post-mortem on Duffell, told the court that the wound to the victim’s chest went between his ribs and penetrated down his right lung.
Defence counsel Ben Tonner questioned Dr. Jyoti over an apparent discrepancy in a series of reports where the doctor had written in his first statement that the injuries had been caused by multiple weapons, but later said it had been one weapon used with different amounts of force and “different motions”.
Dr. Jyoti was asked by Tonner if there could have been more than one weapon used.
Jyoti said, “It always exists, that possibility.”
The trial, in front of Justice Cheryll Richards, KC, continues.
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