Lawyer, 35, found murdered in car outside Durban Backlands home

The lifeless body of an attorney-at-law was on Wednesday evening found in his Jaguar motorcar in front of his home with a gaping wound to his neck. Dead in 35-year-old Richard Layne of Lot 183 Century Palm Gardens, D’Urban Backlands, Georgetown.
Based on information received, the now-dead lawyer lived at the above address with his friend, Tony Sulker, a 29-year-old Police Sergeant.
Police stated that at about 19:00h, Layne’s cousin Michael Harden reportedly visited him and they hung out for some time.
Whilst there, the now-dead man had the urge to drink a Starbucks Coffee, and they both left in Harden’s car and travelled to the MovieTowne Mall, Liliendaal, Greater Georgetown where they bought the coffee.
They returned to Layne’s home at about 19:15h by which time, Sulker was asleep in his room in the upper flat of the building. Harden and Layne reportedly hung out on the veranda until about 20:17h when the cousin left for his Eccles, East Bank Demerara (EBD) home.
However, the cousin told detectives that before he left, he made sure that Layne locked both gates to the house and yard. At the time, Layne’s car, a Jaguar bearing registration number plate PYY 2850 was parked in the garage.

Nevertheless, Sulker woke up at about 22:00h to use the washroom and then went to the kitchen where he observed Layne’s car parked on the bridge in front of the house with the now dead man sitting in the driver’s seat in a ‘slumped position’.
Upon seeing this, he reportedly ran to the car and attempted to open the car doors, but they were all locked. He then contacted Layne’s mother who resides in Campbellville, Georgetown, and upon her arrival, they both attempted to open the car doors but were unsuccessful.
At that time, the woman instructed Sulker to break the driver-side door glass which he did by using a hammer. As they opened the door, they observed Layne was bleeding from a wound to his neck and immediately summoned an ambulance and contacted the police.
Layne was, however, pronounced dead by a doctor on duty at the Georgetown Public Hospital. Upon inspection, two wounds were seen on Layne’s neck. Detectives have retrieved CCTV footage and are reviewing same.
Meanwhile, when the Guyana Times visited the home of the dead man on Thursday, relatives were still in a state of shock and did not offer any comments regarding the murder. Persons in the neighbourhood could not recall seeing anything unusual on the night of the gruesome murder. Guyana Times understands that the Police Sergeant was detained for further questioning, and that only recently a brick was hurled through a window of Layne’s property with a threatening note. In addition, there are reports that he was being followed several times.
Back in October 2022, Layne was admitted to the bar by Justice Roxane George. His petition was presented by his now-deceased grandfather Justice James Patterson and Senior Counsel Donald Trotman.
Layne, a former Queen’s College student graduated from the University of Guyana law programme with distinction, receiving the Ram & Mc Rae prize for being the second-best graduating law student.
He also made the Hugh Wooding Law School honours roll.