KINGSTON, Jamaica – The crown on Tuesday began its closing address as the end looms for the long-running trial of the over two dozen alleged members of the Klansman Gang.

A senior prosecutor addressing the court said the crown would refrain from regurgitating the details already placed into the records of the court including those which comprised their response to the no case submissions made by the defence, and asked that the judge in his summation accept those earlier arguments as part of their final submission.

The crown in the meantime pressed trial judge, Chief Justice Bryan Sykes to reject the good character evidence of the remaining accused and accept instead the evidence of the two accomplices, witness number one and witness number two – former gang members turned state witness.

In the trial which began in September of last year with 33 accused, four have since been freed. Twenty-six of the remaining 28 accused, through a combination of sworn and unsworn statements, have insisted that they were industrious and law abiding citizens, while two opted to remain silent.

According to the crown, the evidence of witness number one, who was the one to approach the police and provide information which prompted the investigation and subsequent arrests, was sufficient corroboration for evidence presented in the case.

In the meantime, prosecutors Tuesday pressed the court to accept as “relevant evidence” the voice recordings of alleged conversations between the supposed gangsters, arguing that it was established that the individuals on the calls – who in cases identified themselves by their names and monikers — had an established relationship with each other and were clearly part of the criminal organisation.

According to the crown, the conversations which were played into the records of the court showed that the witness was ‘familiar’ with the various players based on the ‘friendly’ manner in which they spoke.

The crown in opening its case on September 20 said the accused individuals who allegedly comprise the “Blackman faction” of the gang under Andre ‘Blackman’ Bryan’s leadership had various roles in which they acted as “Killers, drivers, lookout men or watchmen, gunsmiths and foot soldiers”.

The crown is alleging that the accused, between 2015 and 2019, carried out a range of murders, conspiracies to murder and extortion and arson throughout the parish of St Catherine. It said the gang’s headquarters at Jones Avenue in Spanish Town was used by gang members for planning their exploits and was also where briefing and debriefing in respect of crimes took place. The court also heard that this was where transactions such as the sale and purchase of guns to carry out murders were done. Several members of the gang in their roles as “foot soldiers”, the court was told, were responsible for ensuring that murders ordered were executed and that extortion monies were collected.

The case, which includes the largest number of accused ever to be tried together in a single matter, is being handled by 40 attorneys. The accused are being tried under the Criminal Justice (Suppression of Criminal Organisations) (Amendment) Act, commonly called the anti-gang legislation with several facing additional charges under the Firearms Act for crimes allegedly committed between 2015 and 2019. All the accused, when arraigned on September 20 at the start of the trial, pleaded “not guilty” to the charges against them.

The offences for which they are being charged include being part of a criminal organisation, murder, conspiracy to murder, arson, illegal possession of firearm, and illegal possession of ammunition.