Man, 50, gets 18 years for murdering Leguan labourer
Almost two weeks after an Essequibo High Court jury had found 50-year-old Phillip Jhagroo, called “Tanky”, guilty of murdering 22-year-old labourer Mark Narine, called “Marko”, he was on Wednesday jailed for 18 years for the crime.
Convicted killer Phillip Jhagroo, aka “Tanky”
The custodial sentence has been imposed by Justice Brassington Reynolds, who has ordered that Jhagroo, who had been on remand since 2019, be given full credit for the time he had spent in pre-trial detention.
Jhagroo, called “Tanky”, has been convicted of killing Mark Narine, called “Marko”, a resident of Leguan, Region Three (Essequibo Islands-West Demerara), between March 30 and 31, 2019. Represented by Attorney-at-Law Latchmie Rahamat, Jhagroo has protested his innocence; and when asked by Justice Reynolds if he had anything to say before the court passed sentence on him, Jhagroo said, “I’m innocent! I was set up and framed! I don’t how the jury is not seeing this! I was framed and put in jail by the Police! I’m innocent; I did not kill nobody. God knows the truth!”
Murdered: Mark Narine, aka “Marko”
Senior State Counsel Tiffini Lyken had appeared for the prosecution.
According to reports, Narine was on his way home when he was lashed off his motorcycle by Jhagroo, and then thrown overboard at School Dam, Richmond Hill, Leguan. Narine’s lifeless body was pulled from a trench the following day.
A post-mortem examination had given Narine’s cause of death as drowning, but had also revealed blunt trauma to his face and hands which are consistent with a severe beating.
While on remand for Narine’s murder, Jhagroo, along with three other prisoners, had escaped from the Lusignan Prison in 2020. He was recaptured in March 2021, after being caught stealing a chicken from a farm in Ruby, East Bank Essequibo (EBE).
