Ex-girlfriend testifies about ‘sacrifice’ text message during Shineka Gray murder trial
Published:Wednesday | November 29, 2023 | 2:47 PM
The ex-girlfriend of Gregory Roberts, the man being tried for the 2017 murder of schoolgirl Shineka Gray, today testified that he sent her a text message containing the word sacrifice.
The woman told the St James Circuit Court that the message was sent days before the teenager's body was found in bushes with stab wounds.
The witness, who was the sixth of the prosecution's intended 18 witnesses to testify at the trial, said that the defendant, with whom she had been in a relationship of approximately two years, sent her a message with the menacing word on the night of January 29, 2017.
“Gregory texted me from his phone, [and] there was a mention about 'sacrifice.' That word was in the text message,” the witness told lead prosecutor Andrea Martin-Swaby.
“When you saw that word, did you respond to him?” Martin-Swaby asked.
“I'm sure I did respond, but I can't tell you the exact words,” the witness answered.
The witness also told the court that on the following day, January 30, 2017, Roberts messaged her to ask if another witness, who testified for the prosecution on Monday, had shown her a video that he wanted her to see.
“Gregory did text me asking if [other witness] showed me the video, and I said 'What video?' and he said, 'I asked him to send you the video.' I am not sure what this video is about,” the witness explained, noting that Roberts never sent her the video in question himself.
The previous witness had testified on Monday that on January 29, 2017, Roberts came to him wearing bloodstained clothes and showed him a video of himself stabbing a young girl.
Shineka Gray was found dead in bushes in Irwin, St James with multiple stab wounds on February 1, 2017.
The trial continues later today.
- Christopher Thomas
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