THE CASE OF: Man Accused of 2018 Murder of Leon Bernard
by Anita Nembhard- Flowers
Belize City, Mon. July 19, 2021
Tonight Pinks Alley resident, 28-year-old, Steven Flowers, aka “Fats” or “Grizzly” is a free man after the DPP ended their murder case against him this morning with a nolle-prosequi.
It is what Flowers was anticipating he told us and today his dream came through after Judge Herbert lord, the presiding judge over the matter gave him the good news in court at around 10am Monday morning (July 19th.) in the Supreme Court.
Judge Lord first heard from the crown, represented by Crown Counsel from the DPP’s office, Romey Wade who was asked to commence the Case Management for Flowers but instead of reviewing the evidence the police claim they would be relying on in the trial against Flowers, the crown Wade entered a nolle-prosequi and served the court with those documents which simply meant the crown had no evidence at this time to proceed against Flowers.
Judge Lord in layman’s term explain to the accuse what a nolle-prosequi means that ‘the prosecution’ (the crown), will not be offering any evidence against him at this time, no witnesses were called to the stand, he said, hence the case against you, is dismissed.
He further explained to Flowers that, “I must tell you that whenever they enter a nolle prosequi, the crown have the rights to bring back charges against you, but 99.5 of the time, the crown does not bring back a charge, explained Judge lord.
And while Judge Lord emphasized on the rare instant of such occurrence, for Flowers it was freedom after three years and six months in prison.
The Pinks Alley resident was taken back to the cell block and within minutes emerged free and was whisk off from the court area on a motorcycle.
Before he left the court precinct, Flowers told us that he was innocent and that the charges will not be brought back because he never committed the crime.
Flowers who is a twin and whose twin was also gunned down in the violence Streets of the city who charged for the January 1, 2018 stabbing murder of gang associate figure, 30-year-old, Leon Garcia (aka Leon Gentle) on who was stabbed multiple times to the body and a fatal stab which landed in the center of his chest took his life.
The statements taken by police from eyewitnesses which came from two of his hang out friends suggested that their was a street brawl at the corner of Newtown Barracks and New Road early in the wee hours of New Years morning, January 1, 2018 at around sometime after 3:00 a.m., when Leon Garcia and others were hanging out and ambushed by another group of men who came in the area.
Garcia’s two male friends of the group told police that they saw Flowers throwing stabbing punch and blows at him.
At the end of the street brawl, Garica was stabbed multiple times and even though he was rushed to the KHMH, he died at 4:30 a.m.,
The post-mortem by the doctor said he died from a penetrating stab wound to the chest.
The crown case would not make it to a trial since when the police went in search for the two crown witnesses it turn out futile.
One of them who were located indicated to the crown that his friend is already dead and no matter what he did now, it would not bring him back.
The other could not be located and after numerous visit to his home, he later called and told the crown he was not interested in testifying in the case.