Former Individuals’s Nationwide Social gathering (PNP) Member of Parliament Jolyan Silvera will stay in custody after the Court docket of Attraction on Tuesday upheld a previous ruling denying him bail in reference to the homicide of his spouse, Mellissa Silvera.
Silvera has been in custody since January 2024. He’s dealing with homicide expenses together with an extra cost of utilizing a firearm to commit a felony.
Showing earlier than the Court docket of Attraction, Silvera’s authorized crew—led by King’s Counsel Peter Champagnie and attorney-at-law Patrice Riley—sought to overturn a Supreme Court docket resolution that had denied their shopper bail. Nevertheless, the court docket rejected the appliance, citing the gravity of the allegations and the power of the Crown’s case.
Justice Vivene Harris, who presided over the matter, mentioned there was no compelling purpose to disturb the decrease court docket’s ruling. She highlighted the alleged use of a firearm within the fee of the offence and the evidentiary power of the prosecution’s case as key elements within the resolution.
Silvera’s attorneys had introduced an impartial ballistic report as a part of their enchantment. However Justice Harris dismissed its weight, stating that the report amounted to “simply an opinion,” providing no extra conclusive proof than the Crown’s forensic submissions.
Based on police reviews, Mellissa Silvera, 42, was discovered useless on the couple’s residence in Stony Hill, St. Andrew, on November 10, 2023. Preliminary reviews instructed she had died of pure causes. Nevertheless, a autopsy carried out weeks later revealed she had been shot a number of instances, and three bullet fragments have been reportedly recovered from her physique.
The Crown, represented by Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions Dwayne Inexperienced, has asserted that the proof “factors squarely” to Silvera’s involvement within the killing.
Jolyan Silvera has continued to disclaim any wrongdoing. “He has maintained his place of innocence from day one. I’m not saying that he’s, as a result of I perceive that there’s a report back to that impact. No lawyer ought to ever actually say that as a result of if you’re so sure, then you definitely can be a witness,” Champagnie mentioned beforehand.
A trial readiness listening to is scheduled for September 25, 2025, with the trial set to start on January 12, 2026.
