Witnesses testify in trial of man accused of killing common-law wife

One of the witnesses who testified yesterday in the trial of a man accused of murdering his common-law wife has stated that the defendant had accused the victim of being involved with another man.

Forty-six-year-old Donald 'Patrick' Coleman is accused of murdering his common-law wife and burying the body in a shallow grave under the bed in their one-bedroom board house at Guava Gap, St Andrew.

The Crown represented by prosecutors Meridian Kohler and Alwayne Smith is alleging that Marsha Martin, who had a child for Coleman was murdered between March 24, 2008 and April 4, 2008.

It is being alleged that the motive for the murder was jealousy as Coleman had complained to qMartin's mother that she was having an affair with a man in the community. 

Madreed James testified yesterday that she was the mother of the deceased. 

The witness said sometime before March 2008, the accused had telephoned her and complained that the deceased was involved with another man and it was causing a problem.

The witness also referred to an incident in which the accused used a bottle to hit the deceased in the head and she had to be hospitalised for three days.

Cross-examined by attorney-at-law Donald Bryan, the witness said the accused did not tell her that her daughter had injured him during the incident in which he hit her with the bottle.

Supreme Court Judge Lloyd Hibbert is presiding at the trial in the Home Circuit Court.

Like our new Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/gleanerjamaica

Follow us on Twitter http://twitter.com/JamaicaGleaner

radio@gleanerjm.com