A man told the Supreme Court yesterday he fought for his life with a gunman who took aim at him in a daylight attack.

The man – who cannot be identified for legal reasons – said he recognised the attacker as they struggled on Court Street.

He added: “It was Jahmico Trott. I recognised him when I gripped him.

“I was thinking to myself that Jahmico is trying to kill me.”

But Mr Trott, who is representing himself, suggested that the witness had been drinking and smoking cannabis on the day of the incident and was drunk.

The witness admitted he was “probably feeling nice”, but denied that he was an alcoholic and maintained that he had recognised the defendant.

The witness told the court that he had gone to his cousin’s apartment on Court Street on the afternoon of May 14, 2017 to give back a bicycle he had borrowed.

He said his cousin invited him in for drinks, so he went to a nearby liquor store and bought vodka and beer, and returned to the apartment.

The witness said he and his cousin were talking when his cousin said that it appeared someone with a gun was trying to get into the apartment and the pair went to the door.

He added: “Then I saw somebody climb over the wall on to the porch. I ran down the steps.

“I didn’t see my cousin near me so I thought he had hid somewhere. I ran to my bike but it wouldn’t work so I ran with it a little bit.

“Then shots went out. The person was chasing me.”

He said when he heard the shots he threw himself to the ground, but got up and decided to charge the gunman rather than flee.

The witness added: “I thought to myself if I ran he would shoot me in the back.”

He said he grabbed the gunman’s hand and recognised him as they struggled.

The witness added the weapon fired into the ground twice before the pair fell and he was able to get on top of the gunman.

He said: “I hit him once or twice. I was in full control of the guy.

“When I hit him the scarf came down from his face a little bit – it came off his nose, but it was still around his mouth.”

The witness added another man, Troy Burgess, pulled him off the gunman and, as soon as they were separated, the gunman fired two more shots.

He said he felt a burning sensation on his head and sprinted towards Hamilton Police Station and the attacker turned and ran towards nearby Elliott Street.

The witness added he had gone to a barbecue on Cedar Avenue and to Ducking Stool Park, both Pembroke, before the shooting to hang out with friends and drank at both locations.

He said: “I bought a flask, but I didn’t drink it all myself. We drank it together.”

The witness added he had he smoked cannabis, but denied that he also smoked cocaine.

The jury watched CCTV footage that showed the gunman crossing the street and going to the apartment just after 6pm.

The victim was seen running out of the apartment minutes later and going to a motorcycle parked on the sidewalk.

The two fought in the street and were joined by a third man, who ran across the street to join the struggle before all three scattered in different directions.

Pc Christopher Sabean said the suspect was recorded visiting a Curving Avenue home minutes before the shooting and that he appeared to meet a second person, who he was not able to identify.

Pc Sabean added in cross examination that he had known Mr Trott for between 17 and 19 years, but did not know him well until after the shooting.

He said he tried to identify several of the individuals in the footage, including the suspect, and said that it appeared to him that the suspect had a goatee.

Mr Trott asked the officer what the suspect looked like.

Pc Sabean said: “They look a lot like you. The face shape looks a lot like yours.”

Mr Trott replied: “But all black people look alike to you.”

Pc Sabean said the comment was “ignorant” and untrue and that he did not know Mr Trott well enough in 2017 to make an identification.

The officer revealed that he was involved in the identification procedure despite being an investigator in the case – something he accepted was now against policy.

Pc Sabean said: “Since then I have been told the policy has changed, but in 2017 and before, I had done it several times. Since then, the rules have changed.”

He added he could not remember who had instructed him to be involved in the identification work, but that it was most likely the senior investigating officer in the case.

Pc Sabean said that one of the other officers involved in the ID process was “under investigation” – although he did not know what stage it was at.

Mr Trott, 33, denies attempted murder, carrying a firearm and using a firearm to commit an indictable offence on May 14, 2017.

He also denies allegations that he intimidated and attempted to corrupt a witness.

The trial continues.

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