108 cases listed for February session of Berbice Assizes
The criminal assizes for the February session of the Berbice High Court opened on Tuesday with a total of 108 cases listed to be heard.
Of the 108 cases, 13 are for murder and eight for manslaughter, with sexual offence cases numbering among the others. The session will be presided over by Justice Navindra Singh and will run until mid-June.
Attorney-at-Law Nafeeza Baig will be representing the State.
Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Shalimar Ali-Hack was high in praise for the way the court dealt with convicted criminals during the October Assizes.
Particular mention was made of the death sentence handed down to two men found guilty of committing murder while in the course of piracy.
Justice Navindra Singh took the salute at the opening of the Berbice Assizes on Tuesday
The DPP said that the rule of law prevailed in the trial and sentence. “Justice has been done to the fisherfolks who lost their lives in a most inhumane and gruesome manner and to their families who lost their loved ones while pursuing an honest living,” the DPP said.
Five persons were also given 66-year sentences for murder, and another man was given a 25-year sentence for killing his wife and stuffing her body in a barrel after he pleaded guilty to the lesser count of manslaughter.
There is still one case pending from the October session. Two men pleaded guilty to murder while in the act of piracy. The court is awaiting a probation report before sentencing them.
Meanwhile, at the New Amsterdam Prisons, there are 51 persons awaiting trial in the High Court – 41 are for murder and two for piracy. One is for attempted murder and the rest are for sexual offences.
Four of the 41 on remand for murder have indicated their willingness to plead to the lesser count of manslaughter. One man has been awaiting trial for 11 years and three months.
