Maitland Watched as Bloodstained Items Were Removed from Apartment, Indecom Officer Testifies

KINGSTON, Jamaica — A crime scene examiner employed to the Independent Commission of Investigations (Indecom) testified in court on Thursday that Constable Noel Maitland watched as investigators secured bloodstained items from his Chelsea Manor apartment in New Kingston, on July 28, 2022.

Maitland is charged with murder and preventing the lawful burial of a corpse following the disappearance of his 24-year-old girlfriend, Donna-Lee Donaldson, in July 2022.

According to the examiner’s testimony, Maitland was present at the apartment when forensic personnel and members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) arrived to conduct a search. “Mr Maitland was inside the apartment around the dining table area,” he said. During the search, the examiner observed blood-like stains on a pair of brown drapes, markings on the western wall, and additional stains on a cream-coloured cushion cover placed on a barrel in the living room.

Photos of the bloodstained items were taken, and the materials were secured and transported to the Institute of Forensic Science and Legal Medicine for DNA analysis.

Prosecutors allege that Donaldson was killed inside the apartment sometime between July 12 and 13, 2022, and that her body was later unlawfully disposed of. Donaldson was last seen alive at the Chelsea Manor apartment complex, where she was reportedly staying with Maitland.

The crime scene examiner also detailed his subsequent visit to the Half-Way-Tree Police Station, where he examined a cream-coloured Toyota pickup truck associated with the case. The vehicle was sealed with yellow crime scene tape, and its rear section was covered with a blue tarpaulin. Several items were observed in the cargo area, but no visible bloodstains were found. The examiner noted that the driver of the vehicle was present during the inspection.

The matter has been adjourned until July 7, 2025, to address a number of administrative issues before proceedings continue.

The case has captured national attention, with calls for justice and greater protection for women growing louder in the wake of Donaldson’s disappearance.