DNA evidence was enough to convict Stanford Glenfield Archibald of murdering Aaron Easton, a Supreme Court jury was told yesterday.

Prosecutor Kulandra Ratneser said the defence wanted jurors to believe in a major conspiracy among Police and Government analysts to convict Archibald. But the only issue of importance was DNA evidence linking Archibald to the crime, he added.

Mr. Ratneser, the Acting Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), was giving closing arguments during the marathon trial.

Archibald, 39, formerly of Sandys, declined to take the stand yesterday. He has previously denied killing Mr. Easton 18 years ago.

Mr. Easton's body was found in a pool of blood on May 4, 1985, on Laffan Street in Pembroke with multiple stab wounds and a fractured skull caused when the killer threw a concrete block at his head.

The Acting DPP has maintained throughout the trial that the evidence was based on DNA and circumstantial evidence.

However, Mr. Pettingill, who provided no defence witnesses, has suggested that evidence may have been tampered with and dates on which Archibald's blood was said to have been taken were questionable.

Yesterday Mr. Ratneser said to the six-woman, six-man jury that they needed to look at the evidence that was the most valid and explained that the “case was complex as it spanned 18 years in history”.

The Acting DPP said at the time of the murder DNA testing was not available, but when the case was reopened in 1996 the DNA testing gave the case fresh evidence.

“The investigation grew and grew from there,” said Mr. Ratneser.

Mr. Ratneser said Mr. Pettingill wanted the jury to believe that the Police, the Government analysts, Dr. Quigley and Dr. John Leask and the pathologist, Dr. Keith Cunningham, were all involved in a major conspiracy to get Archibald.

“These are professional people - they do not have an axe to grind with the accused,” said the prosecutor. “It does not matter how Dr. Cunningham delivered the blood vials to Dr. Leask - whether he had them in his pocket or in a bag.”

He said the eyewitness statement given in evidence by Robert Herd, which described the killer as being “bowlegged” and shorter than the victim - did not matter.

“The only thing that mattered was Archibald's blood found on the concrete block”.

Said Mr. Ratneser: “The DNA profile that was found on the concrete block reportedly matched that of Stanford Archibald.”

The Acting DPP added that the evidence given by Archibald's friend convicted killer Troy Shorter, who is serving a life sentence for the murder of Roger Redman at Hayward's Grocery in 1986, should be considered - even though, when he took the stand, he admitted lying to both defence attorneys.

Mr. Ratneser said Shorter would not have known about the concrete block and other evidence if Archibald had not told him, because he was living in Jamaica at the time of the killing.

He added that Shorter had said that “in his heart” he did not believe Archibald when he told him he had murdered Aaron (Fish) Easton.

Mr. Ratneser ended by saying: “The greatest sin against the human mind is to believe in things without evidence.”

“The DNA evidence was all that really mattered in proving the case against Archibald.”

Mr. Pettingill, who is being assisted by Larry Mussenden, will deliver his closing arguments today before Puisne Puisne Judge Norma Wade-Miller. Crown counsel Cindy Clarke and Juan Wolffe are assisting the Acting DPP.