Last week, soca artist Rodney “Benjai” Le Blanc was warned to desist from confirming foreign jobs while his court matter was being heard. Maybe this is why he didn’t appear at Atlanta Carnival??? hmmmm.
Magistrate Natalie Diop told the entertainer this was causing the trial to be delayed. The magistrate raised the point after Le Blanc confirmed that he would not be in Trinidad in June.
“You made a confirmed booking to be out of the jurisdiction early next month? … The court urges you that until this matter is completed, try your very best to not make bookings to be elsewhere. The court wishes to ensure the matter is dealt with as soon as possible,” the magistrate said.
Diop said while she understood Le Blanc’s situation and that he had been accommodated by the court, she warned that his bookings were causing the matter to be delayed.
Le Blanc is charged that back on December 18 2010, he assaulted constable Valentine Eastman in the execution of his duty. It is alleged that the singer spat in the officer’s face following a performance at San Fernando Hill.
The trial began in January and prosecutor Sergeant Marlon Bruce called charging officer, Corporal Anthony Wolfe and the alleged victim to the witness stand.
But Eastman has since been charged with ten offences of human trafficking. Defence attorney Shalini Khan has since raised the issue of bad character, and made an application to cross examine Eastman on the human trafficking charges.
She is claiming that Eastman is not a credible witness. The legal adviser to the police Southern Division was expected to respond to the application. However, when the matter was called, Diop said she received a letter from Khan, stating that she was sick and unable to be present in court. Diop said while she accepted that the attorney was ill, an entire day set aside for the case was lost.
It is expected that when the matter is recalled on June 27, submissions will be made by attorneys for both sides and the magistrate will make a decision on the application.
