A 20-year-old man, who was 15, when he fatally stabbed another man during a robbery, was on Tuesday sentenced to 12 years in prison by Justice Sandil Kissoon before whom he appeared at the High Court in Demerara.
For legal reasons, the man’s name, address and other particulars have to be withheld because he was a juvenile when he committed the crime.
Initially indicted for the capital offence of murder, the man, on September 1, pleaded guilty to the lesser count of manslaughter, admitting that he unlawfully killed Hemant Persaud on February 19, 2017, during the course/furtherance of a robbery at Stabroek Market in Georgetown.
Hemant Persaud is the brother of former Commissioner of Police, Seelall Persaud. In light of his guilty plea, the presiding Judge further remanded him to prison to await his sentencing hearing which was set for Tuesday.
In sentencing the offender, the Judge complied with the guidelines in the Juvenile Justice Act. From the 12-year sentence, the prison was ordered to deduct the time the man, who was on remand since March 2017, spent in pretrial custody.
Once the offender is released from prison, he has to undergo three years of probation during which he has to enroll in the electrical installation programme at the Government Technical Institute or the Guyana Industrial Training Centre.
Justice Kissoon ordered that a report on his attendance and progress be submitted to him every three months. Failure to adhere to the court’s order will result in the man being remanded to prison for an additional 24 months.
Court facts revealed that Hemant Persaud called ‘Bhim’, 51, of Affiance Village, Essequibo Coast was stabbed to death by the then-teen who robbed him of a gold chain he was wearing shortly after he had returned from the interior.
Meanwhile, in his address to the court, the offender had begged Justice Kissoon for leniency stating, “I was young and lacked guidance. I would like an opportunity to continue my efforts and contribute meaningfully to society and further my studies. I just begging the honourable court to have mercy and leniency on me. Give me an opportunity to correct my wrong…”
State Counsel Muntaz Ali represented the prosecution while Attorney-at-Law Alaira Murphy-Goodman appeared on behalf of the offender.
He was first charged with Hemant Persaud’s murder in March 2017 and thereafter remanded to prison.
At the end of a Preliminary Inquiry (PI) in February 2018, he was committed to stand trial at the Demerara High Court after a Magistrate ruled that a prima facie case was made against him.
After he was arrested by the Police and taken into custody, the then teen, while in the presence of his mother, confessed to the crime, court facts also revealed.