“Surveillance Video Shows “Tax” Shooting Victim Logan Nayneecassum at Saskatoon Restaurant: Crown Argues Identity is Clear”

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The Crown argues Abdi is the man seen in a video shooting Logan Nayneecassum, calling changes in his appearance a “red herring.”

Author of the article: Bre McAdam • Saskatoon StarPhoenix

Published Dec 13, 2023 • 4 minute read

A man identified by witnesses as “Tax” is seen on surveillance video pointing a gun at Logan Nayneecassum moments before shooting him in the leg at Aria Food and Spirits on Aug. 21, 2020. Nayneecassum, 30, died from excessive blood loss. (Court exhibit)

Surveillance video of an after-hours fight between two groups of men that ended in a deadly shooting at a former Rosewood neighbourhood restaurant and bar speaks volumes about what happened that night, the Crown told jurors Wednesday at a Saskatoon murder trial.

It was almost 3 a.m. — an hour after last call — when a man three witnesses identified as “Tax” pulled out a handgun and shot Logan Nayneecassum in the leg during the dispute at Aria Food and Spirits on Aug. 21, 2020.

On Wednesday, Crown prosecutor Mike Pilon told a jury that “Tax” is clearly Afrah Ahmed Abdi — the man charged with second-degree murder.

“Identity is not an issue,” Pilon said during Wednesday’s closing arguments at Abdi’s Saskatoon Court of King’s Bench jury trial, which began last week.

Defence lawyer Leo Adler pointed to photos of the shooter’s face being round and smooth, and his body being bulky and broad-shouldered — a stark difference from his client.

“When you look at all of the evidence, what you see is a different man than the man who is sitting in front of you. And the evidence — the immense lack of evidence — just makes a not guilty verdict the proper one,” Adler told the jury.

Pilon told jurors not to be fooled by Abdi growing out his hair, growing a beard and losing a significant amount of weight.

The video, played in court, showed the man identified as “Tax” initially pull out his gun and attack one of Nayneecassum’s friends at the restaurant’s exit door.

“Tax” then shot Nayneecassum when the victim tried to get “Tax” off of his friend.

The jury heard that Nayneecassum, 30, died from excessive blood loss.

Pilon argued the accused knew that shooting Nayneecassum in the centre of his body at point-blank range could cause death.

Had the bullet been less than a centimetre away from the femoral artery, in any direction, we wouldn’t be here, Adler said, citing a forensic pathologist’s testimony.

He argued the evidence does not prove that his client is “Tax,” but rather that “Tax” was one of several Black men who were at the restaurant and bar that night.

Bartender Travis Philley identified a photo of Abdi as “Tax” from a photo lineup in 2021. During his testimony, he also identified “Tax” as the man sitting in the courtroom’s prisoner’s box.

Pilon told the jury it doesn’t matter that Philley doesn’t know the man’s real name or where he lives — what matters is that he said “Tax” was a regular who he’d known for about eight months.

Adler noted that the photo used in the lineup was a photo of Abdi from 2010. There’s no information on what was specifically distinguishing about it to Philley, he told the jury.

He told jurors that Philley is not a reliable witness because he admitted drinking on the job that night, and testified that the group of Black men at the bar kind of looked the same to him.

Pilon showed the jury eight photos of Abdi throughout the years. In some, his hair was shorter, he didn’t have a beard, and he was heavier.

He said Abdi was 258 pounds when he was brought into Saskatoon police custody in July 2020, and the man in court is “just a skinny ‘Tax’.”

We have no scientific or forensic evidence that conclusively links Abdi to the shooting, Adler said, adding the video only highlights the differences between “Tax” and Abdi.

Adler also criticized the police investigation. He told the jury that police did not seize surveillance video from nearby businesses that could have showed the licence plates of the vehicles that left Aria. He said officers who watched the video knew “Tax” was a smoker, but they did not seize a cigarette butt found near an empty shell casing in the parking lot to test it for DNA. Nor did they try and look for fingerprints at the bar, he added.

Pilon argued that Nayneecassum’s clothing wasn’t tested for transfer DNA because it was soaked in his blood. He told the jury to ignore what he called “pointless information” attempting to divert their attention away from the surveillance video.

“Anything else is just a red herring,” he said.

Justice Mona Dovell will give the jury her instructions Thursday morning..