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Victim shot seven times, court hears

Marico Bassett, 20, is on trial accused of being the gunman who attacked Randolph Lightbourne in broad daylight outside the Charing Cross Tavern on July 23 last year.

A Sandys man was shot seven times but survived to tell police the name of the man who allegedly opened fire in broad daylight, a jury heard.Prosecutors say Marico Bassett, 20, opened fire on Randolph Lightbourne, 44, in the parking lot of the Charing Cross Tavern in Sandys.Crown counsel Maria Sofianos told the jury in Mr Bassett’s trial that he arrived on a motorcycle around 5pm on Friday July 3, armed with a firearm.She said he was wearing jeans, a white T-shirt, a red bandanna around his neck and a crash helmet.Mr Lightbourne, from Sandys, was a regular customer at the tavern and was using his cell phone in the parking lot at the time.“The defendant shot Mr Lightbourne multiple times. In an effort to protect himself, Mr Lightbourne dropped to the ground and used his own motorcycle to shield himself from the bullets,” she said.The victim was hit by seven shots, suffering wounds to his buttocks, lower abdomen and left arm. A total of 12 bullet casings and six bullets were found at the scene. The incident was also captured on CCTV cameras.Mr Lightbourne underwent surgery and detectives interviewed him while he was in King Edward VII Memorial Hospital. According to Ms Sofianos, he named Mr Bassett as the shooter.“The defendant had known the Lightbourne family and at one point was the good friend of Mr Lightbourne’s son,” explained the prosecutor.Mr Bassett was arrested at his home in Loyalty Lane, Sandys, the morning after the shooting. Police seized several items from the residence including a pair of blue denim trousers and a white denim T-shirt.The jury went on to view footage of the incident caught on CCTV cameras at the Charing Cross Tavern, which is located on Cambridge Road.Rossini Lawrence of GET Security, the company that operates the cameras, talked the jury through the images. They showed a man riding a motorcycle along Cambridge Road, wearing a red neck scarf and with no licence plate on the bike.The rider can be seen controlling the bike with his right hand, while extending his left hand, said Mr Lawrence. Smoke can then be seen from that area before six bikes leave the parking lot and people begin to congregate at the scene.Forensic officer Michelle Perinchief told the jury she dealt with a number of exhibits seized by police in the case before they were sent overseas for expert analysis.These included gun shot residue stubs from three cellular phones, a man’s watch with clear stones, a gold ring with ‘GMN for life’ engraved on it, a pair of blue denim trousers and a white T-shirt.Ms Perinchief also dealt with two bullets removed from Mr Lightbourne during surgery and DNA swabs taken from a motorcycle she examined.Bassett denies charges of attempted murder, using a firearm to commit an indictable offence and possession of two bullets, and the case continues.