A key prosecution witness in the murder trial of Jerrico Lindsey took the witness stand yesterday to describe how Lindsey repeatedly fired an assault pistol at drug dealer Benjamin Grajeda in the middle of Kane'ohe Bay Drive in May 2007.

William Freeman Jr., 37, pleaded guilty to kidnapping and hindering prosecution in the case and agreed to testify against Lindsey, a friend since their teenage years in Alabama.

Freeman said he, Lindsey and another Alabama friend, Reginald Pettway, entered Grajeda's Kane'ohe home with the intent of stealing drugs and money they believed were stashed there.

All three men wore dark clothing "for less detection," Freeman told the jury.

"We was gonna be creeping through the night so that's the attire," he said.

Melissa Ordonez, who was a girlfriend of both Lindsey and Grajeda, told them drugs and money were in the house, according to Freeman. The three men arrived at the house after Ordonez called Lindsey and said that Grajeda had left to go shopping, Freeman said.

But they couldn't find what they were looking for and Grajeda returned while they were still inside, the witness said.

Freeman said he and Lindsey beat Grajeda and wrapped duct tape around his ankles and mouth.

Freeman left the house and went back to his car parked outside, then realized that Lindsey had loaded Grajeda into the trunk of the car, he said.

As Freeman was driving away from the scene, he said, "I felt the whole situation had escalated too far."

Lindsey was talking on his cell phone with Ordonez and Freeman knew that Lindsey planned to kill Grajeda because "he was dangerous" to them, he said.

Freeman believed that Ordonez had set up the whole situation and Lindsey was following her suggestions, he said.

"This was just all over this girl, and it had went entirely too far," Freeman said.

So he pressed the trunk release and slowed the car down, allowing Grajeda to jump out of the moving vehicle and run away, Freeman said.

Then Lindsey jumped out of the vehicle, ran down Grajeda and shot him in the street, Freeman testified.

"I saw Lindsey standing over him, shooting," Freeman said.

Lindsey ran back to the car and the trio fled, but police caught up with the vehicle in Hale'iwa.

Freeman was caught, but Lindsey and Pettway escaped.

Lindsey was captured the next day and Pettway was eventually apprehended on the Mainland.

Under questioning from Deputy Prosecutor Darrell Wong, Freeman denied telling police that he had shot Grajeda.

A transcript of his police interview quoted Freeman as saying, "I shot him," but Freeman said that was a misquote.

"I said, 'I shot out,' meaning I took off very fast" while driving the getaway car, Freeman said.

Wong told jurors in his opening statement that the transcript was incorrect and detectives support Freeman's version of what was said.