Team allowed to go to ‘avoid diplomatic crisis’

The former Scotland Yard detective said he did not have sufficient evidence to charge anyone with Woolmer’s murder and trying to stop the Pakistani players “would have caused a significant diplomatic incident and had an extremely adverse effect on the World Cup”.

It would have created an uproar “if I had started holding people against their will”, he said.

Shields, however, said that he was negotiating with Pakistani diplomats Zahid Hafeez Chaudhuri and Said Ahmad, who had arrived in Jamaica from the United States, to make provision for the cricketers’ return if they needed to be questioned again.

Though there is no extradition treaty between Jamaica and Pakistan, Shields referred to a 1996 case where Zeeshan Pervez, was sent back from Pakistan to face a rape trial in Kingston.

Both the Pakistani diplomats were shown the crime scene room 374 by Shields to convey the message that the investigation was “open and transparent.”

Later, Chaudhuri told the daily, “Our objective is to provide all necessary cooperation to the Government of Jamaica.”

Asked if players would return to Jamaica to help the probe, he said, “There is no suspect in the Pakistani team, so it is premature to discuss that.”

Meanwhile, as the probe spreads its wings, the sleuths will also take DNA samples and fingerprints from West Indies captain Brian Lara, whose room was bang opposite to Woolmer’s on the 12th floor of the Pegasus hotel.