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Accused man’s DNA was found on gun, jury told

The DNA of accused gunman Noet Barnett was found on a glove, gun and bag relating to the allegations, a jury heard.The DNA of other people was discovered on the items too, according to an expert.Mr Barnett, 25, is said to have opened fire on Jeremiah Dill, 28, in broad daylight outside a convenience store on Parson’s Road, Pembroke, on the morning of October 4, 2010.He is on trial at Supreme Court accused of attempted murder, which he denies.The jury has heard how Mr Barnett was arrested on December 22, 2010, the date the gun used in the shooting was found, some three months after the crime.The Rexio revolver was found by police in a drawstring bag on a wall in East Gate Lane, Pembroke on that date, a short distance from Mr Barnett’s home on Footbridge Lane.The gun was wrapped in a red cut-off sleeve and there were also a pair of gloves in the bag.A man named Kofi Dill was arrested at his house, just metres from the gun discovery, on suspicion of possessing a firearm. He was later charged over it, according to evidence on Thursday from Detective Chief Inspector Nicholas Pedro. A woman named Thayja Simons was arrested there too.Mr Barnett was arrested that same day, when police spotted him walking towards East Gate Lane. His cousin Kenneth Smith, who lived on East Gate Lane, was arrested elsewhere, but not in relation to the gun, according to the detective.The jury heard from prosecutor Rory Field on Tuesday that the gun was compared by an expert to a bullet fired at Mr Dill and found to have been the same gun that was used.On Friday, they heard from DNA expert Candy Zuleger. She told the jury Mr Barnett’s DNA was on the grip and the trigger of the revolver along with that of Kofi Dill and Ms Simons.The accused man’s DNA was also found on the outside of the drawstring bag the gun was found in, along with that of Kofi Dill, Thayja Simons and Kenneth Smith.The DNA of Mr Barnett, Thayja Simons and Kenneth Smith was found on the inside of the drawstring bag. The DNA of all four persons was found on the drawstring of the bag.Mr Barnett’s DNA was found inside the right glove found in the bag. Ms Zuleger said she found DNA from at least one other individual inside the glove, but she did not know who.The DNA of at least two people was inside the left glove, but Ms Zuleger could not say who they were.Mr Barnett’s DNA was found, along with the DNA of Ms Simons and Kofi Dill on the outside and inside of the red cut-off sleeve the gun was wrapped in.Meanwhile, analysis of the knot in the red sleeve found the DNA of Mr Barnett, Ms Simons and Mr Smith.According to Ms Zuleger, no two people have the same DNA unless they are identical twins.Answering questions from defence lawyer Charles Richardson, she agreed that DNA can be transferred between items when they touch each other, and there is no way of telling how Mr Barnett’s DNA got onto the items.However, when Mr Richardson suggested there may have been cross-contamination when she examined the items at her Florida laboratory, she denied that was true.She said the control measures in place to prevent any cross-contamination “performed properly”.After his arrest, Mr Barnett told detectives he spent the morning of the shooting on October 4 2010 travelling to and from a job interview at the Fairmont Southampton hotel. He later visited Mr Smith’s home on East Gate Lane, where he said he played video games until the evening.He denies charges of attempted murder, using a firearm to commit attempted murder and handling a firearm, and the case continues.