KINGSTON, Jamaica — The murder trial of six policemen is to resume on Monday in the Home Circuit Court in Kingston, after it took a short break last week to allow prosecutors to get their house in order.

Prosecutor Kathy-Ann Pyke told Judge Sonia Bertram-Linton that she has a specific order in which she would like her witnesses to appear to ensure tidiness in the trial.

Pyke’s appeal to Bertram-Linton for a short adjournment of the matter did not sit well with defence attorney, Hugh Wildman. Wildman charged that the prosecution was wasting time and suggested that there were witnesses who could be called while the prosecution sorts certain things out.

Last week, three cops, including a superintendent, took the witness stand to testify in the case.

On Monday last week, the superintendent testified that numerous searches to locate diaries with information surrounding the shooting death of three men by cops on Acadia Drive in 2013 proved futile.

The superintendent told the court that a station diary is regarded as “the number one book” because incident reports and all movements of police personnel should be recorded and contained within.

On trial for murder are Sergeant Simroy Mott, Corporal Donovan Fullerton, and constables Andrew Smith, Sheldon Richards, Orandy Rose and Richard Lynch. Corporal Fullerton is also charged with making a false statement to the Independent Commission of Investigations.

The cops are being tried in relation to the January 12, 2013 shooting deaths of Matthew Lee, Mark Allen and Ucliffe Dyer.

The superintendent was asked by prosecutor Kathy-Ann Pyke whether the station diaries in question were ever located.

In his response, the senior cop told the court he “did not find them”.

“I consulted the sub-officer at the Constant Spring Police Station and the sub-officer in charge of stores. I caused them to make checks in the station and in the stores. I also visited them from time to time to observe checks being made. It took more than a week and we made checks several times,” the senior cop explained.

The prosecutor asked him whether, during those checks, any diaries at all were located. The superintendent confirmed that diaries were found but none relating to the case currently before the courts. He said diaries were found but could not “recall seeing any for 2013”.

“The search was pretty much confined to the Constant Spring Police Station where the stores are located,” he said, indicating that he did not believe anything new would be found if searches continue for the diaries.

“I don’t know if there are any more locations [to search]. I am satisfied with the searches,” the superintendent said, indicating that he would not be able to produce the diaries at this or any future time.

During cross-examination by defence attorney Hugh Wildman, the senior cop explained that he made no entries in the station diaries in question and had nothing to do with their compilation.

Wildman suggested that the superintendent was, in effect, sent on a wild goose chase to locate diaries to which he did not make entries.

The superintendent told the court that he only got involved in the search because it fell under his purview, but he had nothing to do with them directly.

He said he became involved in the search following a request by the Independent Commission of Investigations earlier this year.

“Having gotten the request, my task was to produce the crime diary, station diary and the movement diary at the Constant Spring Police Station for the period January 11 to 13, 2013,” he said.