Three men acquitted in the slaying of a Connecticut artist on the Caribbean island of Tortola are not home free yet – they still face conspiracy charges as a fourth suspect goes on trial for murder.
“These guys are not completely cleared,” Jim Morris, an ex-boyfriend and close pal of victim Lois McMillen, told The Post yesterday. “They have to come back in October.”
The additional charges were little consolation to McMillen’s grieving relatives, who Morris said were horrified at the acquittals.
Cleared in McMillen’s death were: Alexander Benedetto, 35, who works for a Manhattan book publisher; Michael Spicer, 37, a law student; and Evan George, 23, an unemployed construction worker.
They still face a conspiracy charge of “perverting the course of justice,” including influencing a potential witness, said lawyer Joseph Archibald, who represents George.
“I don’t see any substance or value to this charge,” said Archibald, adding that the three men have left the island on $10,000 bond each.
William Labrador, 37, a financial adviser from Southampton, L.I., is still behind bars on murder charges in the case.
His lawyer, Sean Murphy, said the prosecution has a weak case against his client and that a host of defense witnesses are lined up to refute the prosecution’s key witness, Jeff Plante, who claims Labrador confessed to killing McMillen.
“We’ve got more witnesses that will destroy Jeff Plante’s credibility,” Murphy said. “We are going to take him out.”
Plante is a jailhouse snitch who claims Labrador even expressed remorse for killing McMillen.
“I still have my suspicions about Mr. Labrador,” Morris said. “He was alone on the night that Lois was murdered.”
The McMillen family was stunned at the acquittals, Morris said.
“Lois’ aunt was devastated by the judge’s decision and that he didn’t allow certain testimony from the family’s private investigator in the trial,” Morris said.
Morris said he was outraged that forensic evidence taken from McMillen’s fingernails was never presented at trial.
“What happened to the forensic evidence? Where are the results? This is key evidence that can link Lois to her attacker,” he said.
Murphy said that if Labrador is acquitted of murder, the conspiracy charge of “perverting justice” would be dropped against the group.
But regardless, Murphy said, he doubted the three men acquitted “would return to face another ordeal” voluntarily.
“I’d take my chances and wait for extradition procedures,” he said.