Hubert ‘Yankee’ Bennett”
sent back in for further deliberations. When they came out the second time, they acquitted Bennett of murder but found him guilty of manslaughter. In that verdict, the jury’s decision was unanimous.
Bennett was accused of stabbing the teenager twice, once to the heart, and once to the upper left shoulder. On August 23, 2005, while at the International Players Pub on Electric Avenue in the St. Martin’s Area, a fight broke out after Bennett began accusing Emmanuel of knowing who stole his bicycle that had gone missing.
The prosecution’s witness was Georgia Curry, who witnessed when Bennett was involved in a fight with the deceased. Curry told the court that she was at the club attending a karaoke when she saw Bennett singing. She says she left the club through the back door and that’s when she saw Bennett approach Tiquon and began to accuse him of knowing the whereabouts of his missing bicycle. According to Curry, Tiquon told Bennett that he had no idea about his stolen bicycle and that’s when Bennett grabbed the deceased by the shirt and pulled him from the verandah of the club. Both men fell to the ground where Bennett began to beat Tiquon. The fight continued when Bennett dragged Tiquon to another yard where he continued to beat him up and then dragged him in front of the club where Curry says she saw Bennett stab Tiquon.
In a statement from the dock, Bennett told the court that, “It wasn’t me. Uno have deh wrong man.” Prosecutor in the case, Trienia Young thought that she had proven all the elements of murder and was certain that the jurors would have convicted Bennett of murder since the stabbing death of Tiquon was clearly not a case of any provocation and there was no evidence of Tiquon having any weapon or even putting up a fight the night of his untimely death.
Judge Adolph Lucas has reserved sentencing of Hubert “Yankee” Bennett for March 2, when a mitigation plea will be heard on his behalf.
