A High Court judge has dismissed all charges against Jahciba Shoy in connection with the 2023 fatal shooting of a Syrian national during a robbery at a Desouza Road convenience store — ruling that the prosecution’s evidence amounted to no more than suspicion and speculation and was too weak to put before a jury.
The No-Case Submission
Justice presiding accepted a no-case submission made by defence attorney Wendel Alexander, dismissing the charges of murder, manslaughter, and aggravated robbery at the close of the prosecution’s case — before the defence was even called to present its side.
Alexander argued both limbs of the Galbraith test, a legal standard under which a judge must determine whether the prosecution’s evidence is so weak that no reasonable jury could safely convict, or whether the evidence, even taken at its highest, is insufficient to support a conviction.
Alexander submitted that the prosecution had failed to meet either threshold, telling the court that the evidence presented was too weak and amounted to nothing more than suspicion and speculation. He urged the judge to withdraw the matter before the defence was required to answer.
What the Evidence Showed — and What It Did Not
The case against Shoy rested in part on surveillance footage obtained from businesses near the scene. Alexander told the court the footage showed only Shoy and another individual walking together for several minutes — but did not link his client to the offences charged.
The prosecution’s eyewitness — a woman who was present inside the shop during the robbery — testified that an armed man entered the store and confronted the cashier before she fled. She told the court she heard two gunshots shortly afterwards. However, under cross-examination, the witness acknowledged that she never saw the gunman’s face and could not describe his complexion.
