4 men for sentencing today for murder, manslaughter and rape

Four men are scheduled to be sentenced today, Friday, April 29; two for the capital offence of murder, one for manslaughter, and the other for rape and assault causing actual bodily harm.

Earlier this month, Stafrei Alexander and Owen Belfield were found guilty of the 2015 murder of Richard Remington, late resident of Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice). These two men had been on trial for the offence before Demerara High Court Judge Brassington Reynolds and a 12-member mixed jury.
Alexander, called “Ratty” and “Mad Dog”, and Belfield had initially pleaded not guilty to the joint indictment, which stated that they murdered 44-year-old Richard Remington between February 8 and 12, 2015 in the county of Demerara.
Following deliberations, which went late into the night of April 1, the jury returned unanimous guilty verdicts for both men. As such, they were further remanded to prison, pending sentencing, to allow for the compilation of probation reports in their favour and for victim impact statements.
During the trial, the duo was represented by Attorney-at-Law Adrian Thompson, while Senior State Counsel Seeta Bishundial had appeared on behalf of the prosecution. Government Pathologist Dr Nehaul Singh had testified that Remington was shot twice to his right-side temple. He gave the man’s cause of death as gunshot injuries to the head.
Remington’s decomposed remains were found in a clump of bushes along a track in the vicinity of Matthews Lane/Cholmondeley Hill in Christianburg, Linden. The now dead man’s relatives had told the Police that he had left his home three days before his body was discovered. They had also opined that he might have been lured into the bushy spot by someone he had known.
Alexander, who is serving a life sentence for attempted murder and is awaiting trial for another murder, was among several high-profile inmates who escaped when a fire destroyed the Camp Street prison back in 2017.

Manslaughter
Businessman Junior France, who was found guilty of fatally shooting 17-year-old Dane Jerrick on May 17, 2020, will also be sentenced today. The 44-year-old France was initially indicted for the murder of the teen, but following a trial before Justice Jo-Ann Barlow in the Essequibo High Court, the jury had found him guilty of the lesser offence of manslaughter.
During his trial, France, a remand prisoner, was represented by Attorneys-at-Law Nigel Hughes and Ronald Daniels, while Senior State Counsel Tiffini Lyken had appeared for the prosecution.
It was reported that at about 03:30h on the day in question, at Puruni Landing, Mazaruni River, Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni), Jerrick was shot in the lower back by the businessman.
The teen’s uncle had told Guyana Times that family members were told that his nephew and a driver had had an argument, which had quickly escalated into a scuffle, during which Jerrick had attempted to escape the blows, but someone in the crowd had identified him as a thief.
The businessman, who was in close proximity to the scene, had reportedly drawn his weapon and shot Jerrick. It was reported that after the shooting, an angry mob had stormed the businessman’s shop and carted off a quantity of goods. The mob had even attempted to burn the building down, but had managed only to scorch a section of the shop.

Rape
37-year-old taxi driver Thurston Semple, who was found guilty of assaulting and raping a Venezuelan woman, will be sentenced today by Justice Priya Sewnarine-Beharry at the Sexual Offences Court in Demerara.
On the charge which alleged that he sexually penetrated the woman against her will between February 24 and 25, 2021, the jury returned a guilty verdict in the proportion of 10-two. On the assault charge, they found him unanimously guilty.
Following the verdicts, the convict was further remanded, pending sentencing.
State Counsels Muntaz Ali and Nafeeza Baig had appeared for the prosecution, while Semple was represented by Attorney-at-Law Everton Singh-Lammy.
The facts stated that, around 22:30h on the day in question, Semple drove up alongside the woman, who was standing in front of a hotel in Georgetown. The two of them began conversing, during which Semple agreed to pay her $10,000 to have sex with him. The woman left with Semple, and was transported to his Tucville, Georgetown home.
Upon arrival, she sat on a bed and smoked a cigarette. They then engaged in sexual intercourse. During the sex act, the condom broke, resulting in the woman having to replace it. While doing so, she told Semple that he only had 15 minutes remaining, and that if he did not finish within that time, she would leave. Semple replied by telling her “Okay”, before leaving for the kitchen.
Upon his return, he grabbed the woman by her hair, placed a knife to her neck, removed the condom from his penis, and forced the woman to perform oral sex on him. When the woman stopped performing the act on him, Semple dealt her several slaps to her face.
At this point, she requested to have a drink of water. When Semple turned his back, the woman escaped through a glass window in a naked condition.
Semple ran behind her, again grabbed her by her hair and dealt her several stabs with a knife. When the woman held onto the weapon, Semple lashed her about her body with a tube that was filled with cement.
To get away from Semple, the woman jumped a fence and began crying out for help. Persons came to her rescue. Shortly after, Police arrived at the scene and arrested Semple. The injured woman was taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital, where she was treated for lacerations about her body, and fractured ribs, among other injuries.
After the offences were put to him and he was cautioned in accordance with the Judge’s Rules, Semple replied: “Officer, I had sex with her. I paid her for the service, and she refused to do what I asked… and I assaulted her in her face with a PVC [polyvinyl chloride] pipe”.