The Tribune

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune News Editor

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

A MAN fatally shot at Lynden Pindling International Airport last year allegedly named his killer before dying, telling a witness: “This DJ, Nesha husband who shot me bey, please tell my kids, my daughter and my son, I love them.”

That chilling statement formed a central part of the Crown’s case against granting bail to 26-year-old pilot Donald Ferguson, who awaits trial for murder and multiple drug trafficking offences.

Supreme Court Justice Neil Brathwaite ruled that prosecutors had presented a prima facie case and determined that Ferguson posed a risk of flight and reoffending due to his previous drug convictions and skills as a licenced pilot.

Ferguson was arraigned on January 21, 2025, on charges including the June 16, 2024, murder of Geovani Rolle. Prosecutors say Rolle was gunned down at the airport and, before succumbing to his injuries, identified Ferguson as his killer by referencing Ferguson’s estranged wife, Tanisha Smith — also known as Nesha.

Smith confirmed to police that she had been in a relationship with the victim and alleged that Ferguson had threatened and harassed her following their break-up.

In a separate string of incidents, Ferguson allegedly conspired between October and December 2024 to import a large quantity of drugs into the country. On December 6, 2024, police in Spring Point, Acklins, reported that a small aircraft made two low passes before crash-landing on the runway.

Two men fled the scene, but authorities recovered 25 bales of suspected cocaine, one bale of suspected marijuana, and an iPad linked to Ferguson found in the cockpit. Ferguson was also charged in connection with the discovery of a quantity of marijuana at his home on January 18, 2025.

In court, Ferguson’s defence argued that the murder charge was based on weak evidence and suggested that the police only laid the charge months after the incident due to pressure from the victim’s family. They questioned the lack of security footage tying Ferguson to the scene and pointed out he had been released after his initial arrest.

They also argued that the iPad found in the drug plane was not sufficient to prove his guilt, as multiple people flew the aircraft. The marijuana possession charge, they claimed, was minor and blown out of proportion.

However, prosecutors argued that Ferguson’s prior conviction in 2020 for drug importation, conspiracy to import, and conspiracy to possess drugs with intent to supply demonstrated a pattern of criminal conduct. They also highlighted the seriousness of the offences and the alleged dying declaration from the murder victim, which, combined with motive and opportunity, amounted to cogent evidence.

The judge agreed that while a bail hearing is not the forum for a forensic analysis of the case, the Crown had presented enough to establish a prima facie case. He found that Ferguson’s previous conviction, combined with the nature of the current allegations, supported a reasonable belief that he may reoffend if released.

Of particular concern was Ferguson’s profession as a pilot. The judge noted that Ferguson’s aviation skills gave him the means to flee the countr, and dismissed the argument that his past cooperation with police after the initial arrest meant he would remain compliant now.

“Conditions such as electronic monitoring or curfew would not suffice,” the judge ruled. “They would neither prevent reoffending nor ensure the attendance at trial of a person with the skill set of the applicant who decides to flee.” Ferguson was remanded to the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services. A trial date has not yet been set.