New evidence prompts arrest in 5 year old murder

The D.P.P. did have enough evidence to charge another man in connection with a murder that occurred five years ago. According to court reports, tonight twenty-eight year old Calbert Budd Junior is charged with the murder of Jason Avila. No plea was taken from Budd when he appeared before Chief Magistrate Margaret Mckenzie and the accused has been remanded to Hattieville Prison until December eighteenth. According to investigators, Budd and his brother Marlon were detained shortly after the February 2003 shooting but there wasn’t enough evidence to hold them. Police say their persistent efforts in the case paid off earlier this month as a new lead turned up a witness whose statement, in addition to other evidence, has now warranted an indictment. Avila was riding his bicycle on Iguana Street near Seagull Street when a lone gunman shot him several times.