Former investigator says her probe into Keith Clarke’s death was minimal, without independent judgment

A former senior investigator at the Independent Commission of Investigations (INDECOM) yesterday admitted that she did not exercise any independent judgment in her investigation of the Keith Clarke murder case.

The witness, Taneish Wisdom-Banton, under cross-examination from King’s Counsel Peter Champagnie, yesterday acknowledged that everything she did was at the behest of the former INDECOM director, Terrence Williams.

At the same time, Wisdom-Banton, while admitting that she was, to some extent, familiar with the INDECOM Act, said she was not aware of the requirement for employees to function in an independent, impartial, and objective manner.

Pressed further on whether she, as a senior investigator, was expected to operate independently in her investigations, the witness said, “I was expected to follow instructions.

“We are not talking about instructions. You were expected to function as an independent investigator,” continued Champagnie, who is representing Tingling.

“I don’t know what those expectations are,” she answered.

Wisdom-Banton, who said she had been an investigator since 2002, was giving evidence at the trial of Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) soldiers, Lance Corporals Tingling and Odel Buckley and Private Arnold Henry, who are charged with the accountant’s May 2010 murder.

Shot 25 times

The 63-year-old accountant was shot 25 times inside his master bedroom at his Kirkland Close, St Andrew, home on May 27, 2010, during a police-military operation to apprehend then-fugitive drug lord Christopher ‘Dudus’ Coke.

According to Wisdom-Banton, her investigation of the case was very minimal and she first visited the scene in 2014 and later in 2018.

Further during her cross-examination, Wisdom-Banton disclosed that initially, INDECOM had interest in seven soldiers, and she was presented with medical certificates for three soldiers.

The witness acknowledged earlier that she had given an undated statement but admitted that her failure was an oversight.

According to Wisdom-Banton, that statement was in relation to the incident that occurred 13 years ago and that given the length of time that had elapsed, she would not be able to say with any accuracy when it was signed.

Under cross-examination from Henry’s lead counsel, Linton Gordon, Wisdom-Banton shared that she had written a one-page statement in July this year following a request from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions.

That statement, she said, was pertaining to some letters that were received by Williams and handed over to her.

According to her, she was never aware that she was going to be called as a witness until in late August or early September.

Forgotten statement

She also said under questioning from Gordon that she had completely forgotten about the four-page undated statement that she had provided and that it was King’s Counsel Valerie Neita-Robertson who had jogged her memory about the statement during her cross-examination.

Meanwhile, Wisdom-Banton, during re-examination by Crown Counsel Dwayne Green, said she was not involved in the early stages of the investigation as her employment started in April 2011.

She also testified that there were other investigators from INDECOM involved in the matter.

The trial, which had adjourned on Monday as a result of a medical issue that led to the absence of Neita-Robertson, resumed yesterday with her junior, John-Mark Reid, completing her cross-examination.

Her colleague, Champagnie, informed the court that she was still ill and that they were still unable to say for how long she would be out.

The trial will continue today with testimony from former legal officer at the JDF, Lieutenant Colonel Patrick Cole.

tanesha.mundle@gleanerjm.com