By AZARD ALI Friday, June 22 2012

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HIGH ALERT: Policemen converge outside the San Fernando Magistrates' Courthouseyesterday after a bomb threat put an end to court hearings and other bu...

WOMAN Police Constable Nicole Clement appeared twice in the Princes Town Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday. At 10 am, that day, she reappeared before Magistrate Margaret Alert alongside six police colleagues, jointly charged with murdering three persons in Barrackpore last year.

At 3.15 pm, on Wednesday, WPC Clement was taken back before Magistrate Alert where Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Roger Gaspard informed Magistrate Alert that the charge of murder has been discontinued.

Yesterday, Clement’s attorney Pamela Elder SC, confirmed to Newsday the discontinuance of the murder charge. “She has been granted immunity from prosecution by the DPP. Mr Gaspard informed the magistrate that a notice of discontinuance had been filed. It will not be prudent for me to comment further on this matter engaging the attention of the court,” Elder said.

Elder said that a fresh charge of conspiracy to pervert the course of public justice, was read by Magistrate Alert to Clement, who was not called upon to plead. The magistrate granted Clement $100,000 bail, but she was not released from custody. She was escorted from the courthouse and taken into protective custody.

The remaining six police officers — Cpl Khemraj Sahadeo and Constables Antonio Ramdhin, Glen Singh, Safraz Juman, Roger Nicholas and Renaldo Rivero are all charged with the July 22 shooting murders of Alana Duncan, Abigail Johnson and Kerron ‘Fingers’ Eccles at the corner of Poui Trace and Rochard Douglas. The case was adjourned to July 9.

Elder told Newsday yesterday that the fresh charge against Clement of conspiracy to pervert the course of public justice, was postponed to September 3.