“In your eyes, she was without any rights” – Judge tells wife killer

…as husband who hit wife with car then chopped her gets life sentence

A Whim, Corentyne, Berbice, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) taxi driver who pleaded guilty to viciously chopping and stabbing his 21-year-old wife to death has been sentenced to life imprisonment. Gavin Gill, 33, a father of three, was handed the custodial sentence on Friday by Justice Sandil Kissoon at the High Court in Berbice.

On October 20, State Counsel Abigail Gibbs presented the indictment against Gavin Gill for the March 30, 2019 murder of his wife, Omwattie Gill. The murder occurred at Tulsie Street, Williamsburg Village, Corentyne, Berbice. Gavin Gill, at that hearing, had professed his love for his wife.
“I love my wife so much. I’m sorry for what happened…” he cried. On the day in question, the young woman who shared a child with Gavin Gill was making her way to work when she was attacked by him.
She was first hit with a vehicle her husband was driving and pitched about 25 feet before being stabbed and then chopped with a cutlass. Her neck was almost severed.

Based on reports, she had moved out from their matrimonial home with their then seven-month-old baby girl after he became very abusive.
Two weeks prior to her death, she was living with her mother and had found employment. An autopsy gave her cause of death as shock and haemorrhage due to stab wounds.
At Friday’s sentencing hearing, a probation officer disclosed that the couple had visited the probation office in Berbice seeking help with saving their marriage.
Records at the probation office indicate that Omwattie Gill reported that her husband was an alcoholic who would borrow large sums of money from friends to support his bad habit.
According to the probation officer, the young woman complained that her husband would ask her to pawn her jewellery, including her wedding band, to assist him with repaying his debts. The young mother reported that many days she and her child were left without basic needs.
The probation officer added that the woman was constantly threatened by her husband which prompted her to take out a restraining order against him. During an interview with the probation officer, Gavin Gill expressed regret for his action and sought forgiveness from his late wife’s family.
The probation officer said he expressed sorrow at his daughter having to live without her mother. He told the officer that he hopes that she finds the strength to forgive him when she grows older.
For his part, Justice Kissoon in his sentencing remarks, recapped the factual circumstances of the case. He said that Gavin Gill threatened to kill his wife on March 18, 2019, resulting in her seeking the intervention of the court to obtain a protection order.
He said the protection order was rendered “meaningless” by the actions and blatant disregard for the court order by the confessed killer. The Judge described the young woman’s killing as a planned and premeditated act. Noting that the woman received injuries to the vital parts of her body, Justice Kissoon added that there is no doubt what was her attacker’s intention.
“The history of the relationship prior to this murderous act does not bode well for the accused. This accused pawned everything within the matrimonial home to support his vile habit of alcoholism. This accused has pleaded guilty in the deliberate, passionate killing of his wife without lawful cause.”
Justice Kissoon told Gavin Gill that due to his reckless and irresponsible action, a young child is now left without both of her parents. He further told the killer, “In your eyes, she [Omwattie Gill] was without any rights.” The Justice pointed out that this case is of concern to the court given the overwhelming number of cases of this nature arising from intimate partner violence.
According to Justice Kissoon, Gavin Gill has shown no genuine remorse. The Judge viewed his guilty plea as “strategic” in light of the overwhelming evidence against him. Justice Kissoon also made it clear that there is nothing the killer can tell him to persuade the court to have mercy on him.
Gavin Gill must serve 30 years before he becomes eligible for parole. In the computation of his sentence, the High Court Judge ordered that the prison authorities credit him for time spent on remand. (G1)