LOWELL — Under immunity for his role in the death of Tyrone Phet, the prosecution’s key witness took the stand in Middlesex Superior Court, implicating the Phan brothers (Billy, Billoeum and Channa) as the architects behind Lowell’s murder , 22 years old. Resident and former Chelmsford High football star.

Abdulai Maranda testified for nearly five hours during the brothers’ murder trial Thursday, claiming he was following orders when he drove separately to a location near the shooting scene, where he was to serve as a lookout and possible getaway driver.

During cross-examination by Middlesex Deputy District Attorney Daniel Harren, Maranda testified that on the night of September 13, 2020, he was contacted by Channa Phan and directed to come to Billy Phan’s home in Wannalancit Street. Maranda, who said he was a lower-level gang member, did not question the request but asked if he needed to bring a gun.

When Harren asked why she had asked about bringing a gun, Maranda responded, “Because that’s the life we ​​live.”

Maranda testified that upon arriving at Billy Phan’s house, where Channa and Billoeum Phan were also present, he saw two guns in the kitchen. Billy Phan, who Maranda said is the head of the street gang, identified by authorities as the Outlaws, ordered Maranda to drive his car to a location on Middlesex Street and wait. Maranda said he was to honk if he saw a patrol car, serve as backup or act as a getaway driver if necessary.

Maranda said he knew a shooting was imminent, although he never explicitly mentioned it.

Maranda testified that the three brothers got into Channa Phan’s SUV, a 2014 Honda Pilot, while he got into his Infiniti, and they drove off. Surveillance video and data recovered from vehicles shown during testing indicated that around 12:40 a.m. on September 14, 2020, they headed to the area of ​​Spring Avenue, including the Pilot, which parked in the 80 block of Arlene Road.

Maranda then sat and waited, and finally heard the gunshots from atop a fence where he was positioned. Maranda told how police patrols began to flood the area.

As Lowell Police Officer Jonathan Proulx Testified during the first week of the trialIt was shortly after 1 a.m. when he discovered Phet’s lifeless body riddled with bullets inside a blue Honda Civic parked in a small parking lot outside his home at 50 Spring Ave. Phet’s pet German shepherd sat next to him in the front passenger seat, unharmed. for the shots.

Trooper David Hughes of the State Police Firearms Identification Section testified Wednesday that he recovered 21 shell casings from the scene of the shooting. Ten of them were 10mm casings and 11 were .40 caliber casings. The firearms used in the incident have not been recovered.

Phet received eight bullets that hit him in the arms, chest and head.

Police obtained surveillance video showing a pickup truck pulling into a parking lot on Arlene Road approximately 22 minutes before the shooting. Two men are seen getting out of the van and walking towards the scene of the shooting. Around the time of the shooting, the van’s headlights turn on and moments later, two men run back to the vehicle from Spring Avenue. The SUV then leaves the area.

Maranda testified that he stayed at the scene for a while to make sure the Phan brothers had escaped before deciding to leave. He told Harren from the stand that he was worried the police would stop him, which eventually happened. When questioned by the officer during the stop, Maranda claimed he was leaving a friend’s house. Police searched him and his car before letting him go. However, days later, his car was seized by the authorities.

Maranda testified that he informed Channa Phan about the situation. Channa advised him to contact his lawyer. Maranda testified that he later received a subpoena to appear before the grand jury. Upon informing Channa Phan, she was once again advised to contact her attorney.

According to his account Thursday, Maranda said he met Billy Phan at Lowell Heritage State Park in Pawtucketville in October 2020, the day before he testified.

“He explained to me the worst-case scenarios of the citation, since it is a capital crime,” Maranda said. “He expressed to me that I’m basically (expletive). “It gave me a couple of options.”

Maranda testified that the options discussed were committing perjury to protect the brothers from any charges, fleeing or “getting in there and trying to get out of there,” Maranda said. Maranda claimed that Billy Phan offered him $100,000 to pursue the third option, with an additional promise of $50,000 to Maranda’s mother.

Maranda testified that his initial goal was to follow the plan and lie to investigators. However, he finally began to tell the truth. When Harren asked why she changed her mind, Maranda said, “There’s no way I was lying my way out of this.”

Harren questioned Maranda about the financial assistance he received for testifying before the grand jury and during the trial, which included paid travel and hotel accommodations.

Following direct examination by Harren, Maranda faced intense scrutiny from defense attorneys representing the Phan brothers. Rosemary Scapicchio for Channa Phan, Steven Rappaport for Billy Phan, and James McCall for Billoeum Phan each took turns grilling Maranda with questions, starting with Scapicchio.

Scapicchio fired off rapid-fire questions, starting with Maranda’s earlier statement about not wanting to rat out her friends.

“You knew you weren’t going to go to jail, right?” Scapicchio said. “You get a free pass on that, right? …If you wanted to help your friends, you could have said ‘I did it,’ but you didn’t want to help your friends, you wanted to help yourself, right?”

Scapicchio disputed Maranda’s claim to be a close friend, even best friend, of Channa Phan, who allegedly invited him to join the gang while Maranda was incarcerated in 2016. Scapicchio noted that Maranda couldn’t answer basic questions about Channa Phan. , such as the names of his parents, the fact that he had a wife, his date of birth, or the names of any of his numerous brothers and cousins, in addition to Billy and Billoeum.

Rappaport also focused on Maranda’s unfamiliarity with Billy and Billoeum, in particular, pressing him during interrogation with: “You didn’t really know any of these individuals before that night, did you?”

The three attorneys also focused on discrepancies between Maranda’s testimony before the grand jury and his statements Thursday, noting that his stories continue to change, including the conversations he had with each Phan brother and where he parked at the time of the shooting.

The attorneys also noted that prosecutors and police had spent several hours meeting with Maranda before the grand jury. Rappaport alleged that during those meetings, information about the case was forcibly given to Maranda, which he then repeated to the grand jury.

Authorities have claimed that Phet’s murder was due to his status as an “associate” of a rival gang they were feuding with. On Sept. 13, 2020, the day before Phet was killed, someone believed to be a member of a rival gang shot up a home at 478 Wilder St., which authorities say is known to be connected to the Outlaws.

Rappaport suggested during questioning that Maranda only knew about the two feuding gangs because authorities informed him. When asked during the grand jury how he knew the shooting was gang-related, Maranda responded, “because you told me,” as Rappaport mentions in the grand jury minutes.

The lawyers also reviewed Maranda’s immunity, noting that he was not only immune from prosecution for Phet’s murder but also for other crimes, including those involving drugs and violence.

“And you’ve never actually served anything more than a house sentence, have you?” Rappaport asked Maranda at one point. “You have managed, haven’t you, to avoid imprisonment in cases that are very serious…”

Before Maranda could respond, Harren objected to the questioning, effectively ending that line of inquiry.

Throughout his hours on the stand, Maranda provided brief, measured answers, often taking a long time to respond and frequently asking questions to be repeated. At one point, he admitted to feeling nervous during Scapicchio’s interrogation.

“Yes, it’s a murder trial,” Maranda told the lawyer. “I’m nervous… the way you talk is fast. “I’m just trying to answer the questions the right way and tell the truth.”

Perhaps the most controversial moment during Maranda’s hours on the stand came at the end of her time there. Scapicchio asked: “Do you agree that the truth remains the same, yes or no?” Maranda attempted to give a detailed answer, but Scapicchio aggressively interrupted, demanding a yes or no answer.

“If you tell the truth, it is always the same, it is not different all the time, because there is a truth, right?” she asked.

“Since I’ve been here,” Maranda responded, “I’ve told the truth and I don’t have to lie, and I’ve been 100% honest, I don’t have to lie about anything.”

Scapicchio repeated his question, to which Maranda replied: “The truth is the truth.”

“Exactly, the truth is the truth,” Scapicchio said. “So, when you said in the direct examination that you had immunity, with all the different stories you’ve told, no one told you that they were going to take away your immunity, right?”

Harren again successfully resisted the interrogation, ending that line of investigation.

Maranda, who testified that he is a former gang member, no longer affiliated with the gang since the arrest of the Phan brothers, was escorted by law enforcement as he moved through the courthouse. Members of the families of Phet and the Phan brothers were present in the courtroom gallery throughout the trial.

In addition to facing first-degree murder charges, which carry life in prison without parole, the Phan brothers are also charged with illegal possession of ammunition. Billy Phan faces an additional charge of witness intimidation.

Phet, a 2016 graduate of Chelmsford High School, was captain of the football team his senior year. Phet, who played running back, was a Sun All-Star in 2015.

Judge Kenneth Salinger informed jurors Thursday that the trial is proceeding ahead of schedule and the prosecution is expected to finish presenting evidence Tuesday. Salinger had previously told jurors that the trial, including deliberations, could extend until Nov. 26.

The jury is made up of eight men and eight women. Four of the 16 jurors will be randomly selected to serve as alternate jurors, while the remaining 12 will deliberate. If any of those 12 jurors must be excused once deliberations have begun, alternates will be available to take their place.

The trial is scheduled to resume at 9 a.m. Tuesday in Courtroom 17 of the Cornelius F. Kiernan Judicial Center. The courthouse will be closed Monday in observance of Veterans Day.

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