Former cop jailed for 12 years over brutal attack on family

Facing four counts of attempted murder and four counts of felonious wounding in the Demerara High Court of Justice Damone Younge, former police rank Sean Fordyce opted to plead guilty to the charges, and has thus been sentenced to 22 years’ imprisonment: 10 years for the attempted murder charges and 12 years for the felonious wounding charges.
The court has, however, ordered that the terms be served concurrently, and as such, Fordyce would be subjected to 12 years’ incarceration.
Defence attorney Ronald Bostwick had asked the court to meet Fordyce’s guilty pleas with a measure of mercy. However, state prosecutor Muntaz Ali, highlighting the prevalence of domestic violence and the necessity that deterrent sentences be imposed, had described Fordyce’s actions as a near-massacre, and had urged the court to impose a harsh sentence.
He stressed that not only had the attack been premeditated, but it had also been mercilessly executed by Fordyce against his own family.
During the sentencing, Justice Younge reflected on the gruesome nature of the assault and its devastating impact on the victims. She disclosed that she had initially considered a 16-year sentence, but had made deductions after reviewing probation and prison reports which painted Fordyce as a quiet inmate who had not caused any trouble behind bars.
The court heard that Fordyce had dropped out of school due to financial constraints, had no formal training, and had not participated in any rehabilitation programmes.
Justice Younge noted that while Fordyce reportedly had expressed remorse for his actions and had claimed he had never intended to harm his wife, ‘whom he love’, his actions spoke otherwise.
Defence attorney Ronald Bostwick, in his final plea, asked the court to consider that his client had neither wasted the court’s time nor caused the victims to endure the trauma of reliving the attack through a trial.
He argued that Fordyce, whom he said had come from a loving family, had been viewed positively in his community before the incident; and that even his wife Dorothy had once admitted that she was shocked by his behaviour that night.
Bostwick contended that his client was not a bad man, but had committed a terrible act under circumstances he himself did not fully understand. He emphasized that Fordyce, now 55, could still benefit from structured rehabilitation and reintegration programmes.

Impact Statements
The victims’ impact statements tendered in court also painted a harrowing picture of their suffering.
Magistrate Wanda Fortune, in an emotional statement, recalled the trauma of witnessing her mother’s skull exposed and believing her family would perish that night.
Donette spoke of years of nightmares, the physical pain she continues to endure, and the cruel taunts she faced from people who mocked her disability, calling her “one hand.”
Her mother Dorothy said she “has no feelings for Fordyce”, and could never forget the pain he inflicted on her and her daughters. She accused him of attempting to kill her two-year-old granddaughter, and said the attack had changed their lives forever.
Latoya Wilson, the other victim, revealed that she had spent years hiding her scars, ashamed of the visible reminders of the attack. She described the incident as an unforgivable act, and expressed her ongoing fear that Fordyce might return to harm her.

Sorrow and gratitude
Given opportunity to speak, Sean Fordyce expressed ‘sorrow and gratitude’, stating that he deeply regretted the pain he caused, and assuring the court that there would never be a recurrence of such an incident.
However, prosecutor Ali countered that Fordyce’s remorse did not erase the severity of his crimes. He underscored that Fordyce had not only fled the scene, but had also attempted to manipulate the judicial process even after his arrest.

Judge’s ruling
In her final ruling, Justice Younge noted that the crime involved a dangerous weapon, and had left multiple victims permanently scarred, both physically and emotionally.
She emphasized that the attack had not only been an act of domestic violence, but had also been an attempt to slaughter an entire family.
While considering the time Fordyce had already spent in prison, she ultimately sentenced him to 10 years for felonious wounding and 12 years for attempted murder, and ordered that the sentences run concurrently.

RECAP
The brutal attack, which nearly claimed the lives of Fordyce’s then-wife, Dorothy Fordyce, and her children, occurred on the night of August 1, 2013.
Dorothy Fordyce was preparing to leave her home in Turkeyen, East Coast Demerara when Fordyce confronted her with the assertion that she was not allowed to go. Moments later, as she stepped outside with her children and grandchild, he doused her with dirty water and ominously declared, “I gon’ finish tonight! I gon’ finish tonight!!”
In the next instant, he brandished a 20-inch cutlass from his waist and swung the blade at Dorothy, hacking into her shoulder, face and head.
Dorothy’s daughter Latoya Wilson, who attempted to shield her child from the attack, suffered multiple slashes across her head, neck, back and hands, but the two-year-old child she was holding managed to escape with injuries.
In a desperate attempt to defend herself, Dollette Fordyce, then 12, sustained deep wounds, including one that nearly severed her wrist.
Wanda Fortune, daughter of Dorothy Fordyce and now a magistrate, was also attacked as she fled to a neighbour’s house, almost naked and bleeding from deep lacerations she had sustained.
After this attack, Sean Fordyce fled the scene and remained on the run for over two years, until his capture on October 20, 2015.
Even after his arrest, he attempted to pervert the course of justice by offering financial compensation to one of the victims in exchange for halting legal proceedings.