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22 May 2010
7.36.
Bishop Blair went to the Commissioner’s office the following day.
James Forbes was there. Of the meeting with CoP Ellington, the Bishop said –
“He (Ellington) asked me to go back into Tivoli and share
some things with Coke. I agreed but I had to go in myself.
I went back in that same Saturday. I saw none of the
armed men until I got to the office where I saw four (4). I
met with Coke and conveyed to him the Commissioner’s
request for him to turn himself in to the State or the U.S.
authorities by waiving his right to an extradition trial. There
was a promise that, if he waived his rights, he might get a
lesser sentence of five to seven years. He thought it might
be a ploy and they might drop the charges, re-arrest him
and jail him for life. He was reluctant to surrender to the
local authorities because of the death of his father who died
in prison without explanation. That meeting lasted an hour
or less. I pointed out to him the likely loss of life.”
7.37.
That evening Bishop Blair reported to the Commissioner that Coke
was “willing to wait his time out with the judicial system”. As to the internal
security operation, Bishop Blair said that he “knew that the event would happen
but Coke did not know”. He confirmed telling the Commissioner that –
“I had never seen so many weapons illegally by persons who
were not supposed to have them and I would offer a prayer
for him.”
7.38.
When cross-examined, Bishop Blair described the person who took
him into Tivoli Gardens as “one of the leaders of the community”, and he made it
clear that, on his way to Coke’s office on 19 May, he saw armed gunmen “en
route to Coke’s office and at the entrance to the community”.
Mr. Golding’s Evidence
7.39.
Mr. Golding said that he spoke with Bishop Blair who indicated that
there was some reluctance on the part of Coke to surrender. Mr. Golding said
that Bishop Blair spoke of the number of guns he had seen in Tivoli Gardens