Since January, Jeff Joubens Theus and Ebamba Ndutu Lufiau have been jointly tried by jury for the murder of Angelo D'Onofrio, a client who was peacefully seated at Hillside Cafe, in the north of the city.
The prosecution's thesis is that the two accused wanted to kill Antonio Vanelli, a member of the mafia who regularly attended the establishment.
Client Angelo D'Onofrio physically resembled the mafia, but he had nothing to do with him, he was not known to the police and he had no criminal background. A gunman entered the cafe, shot Mr. D'Onofrio, shot him dead and fled.
Investigators from the SPVM homicide section determined that Theus was the gunman and Lufiau the driver who had driven him there before and after the murder.
On Monday, however, Judge Daniel Royer told the jury that Lufiau could not continue to stand trial for the moment. "He may have had a stroke," said the magistrate, adding that the medical opinions received about him indicated that he was not fit to continue the hearings.
His trial was therefore separated from that of Theus and postponed.
Listening
An SPVM investigator, David Desrochers, yesterday recounted how police officers had been watching Theus' conversations during the investigation.
Whenever new information about the case was made public or a member of his entourage was questioned by the police, Theus multiplied the frantic conversations with his brother or friends. These conversations were intercepted by the police.
He made several calls to know how to renew his emergency passport in order to leave the country. He called a girl to tell him that he had to see her in person to discuss something very important that we can not talk on the phone, or even on Snapchat, he said.
Shortly before his arrest, he also questioned how the police could have identified him as a suspect.
"Who has been talking? We'll never know, "he told another suspect in an intercepted conversation that was presented to the jurors on Monday.
