Murder of British teen: Convicts seeking to appeal death, life sentences

Following a death sentence handed down by Justice Sandil Kissoon, Aaron Hing, who was convicted for the brutal murder of his godbrother Dominic Bernard, has approached the Court of Appeal to overturn the ruling.

Hing’s partner in the crime, Stayman George, who was sentenced to life imprisonment after pleading guilty, has also filed a notice of appeal.

While Hing received the death sentence, his partner in crime, Stayman George, was given the life sentence after he pleaded guilty to the murder.
The notice of appeal against the conviction was signed by Hing on November 15, 2021. Hing, in the notice, is contending that the trial was unfair, and he also indicated his intention to appeal against the severity of the sentence.
On November 6, Hing, considered the mastermind behind the killing of British teen Dominic Bernard in 2015, was given the death penalty. In handing down the sentence, Justice Kissoon said it was the best the court could do to ensure justice.
When the trial commenced on October 13, 2021, Hing pleaded guilty to murder and told the court that he was also a victim of a crime, and it was his co-accused and friend Stayman George who murder the 18-year-old Bernard.
Hing told the court that at the time of the murder, they were all under the influence of drugs, and it was George who hammered Bernard to death over a broken cell phone. He then said he remained silent and did not report the incident to anyone because George had threatened to kill his family if he went to the Police.
As such, Justice Kissoon had entered a not guilty plea on behalf of Hing, and the Prosecution was forced to call witnesses to prove its case. In the end, the jury found that Hing was guilty of murder, and the Judge imposed the death penalty.
Earlier, George pleaded guilty to the inditement which stated that on October 14, 2015, at Kildonan Village, Corentyne, he murdered 18-year-old Bernard. He was subsequently given the life sentence with the possibility of parole after 35 years.
George has challenged his conviction on the grounds that his guilty plea was not unequivocal, it was as a result of pressure by his Attorney Ravindra Mohabir, and that the Judge erred in accepting the plea of guilty to murder, which is contrary to Common Law, contending that based on the facts presented by the prosecution, the Judge should have accepted a guilty plea to manslaughter.
It was reported that Bernard arrived in Guyana on October 14, 2015 for a three-week vacation with his godbrother Hing. He was scheduled to fly back to England on November 5, 2015, but failed to do so.
His father Andrew Bernard had contacted his godson (Hing) about his son’s whereabouts after he did not return home. However, Hing told his godfather that he was unaware that the teen was coming to Guyana. The father then flew to Guyana.
His visit led to the intensification of the investigation, which later resulted in the discovery of the teenager’s body. On January 8, 2016, the badly decomposed body of the teenager was found in a shallow grave at Nurney Village, Corentyne.
A post mortem examination revealed that he had sustained a fractured skull and a broken neck, among other injuries.