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Cotton tree murder accused sentenced to death
Twenty-one-year-old Nazrudeen Jahoot, called ‘Buddy’, of Cotton Tree, West Coast Berbice, who was on trial for the August 25, 2008 murder of fellow villager Kemlall Mangal called ‘Ochro’ and ‘Dereck’, was yesterday sentenced to death by hanging.
Justice Brassington Reynolds handed down the sentence after a mixed jury found Jahoot
Sentenced to hang: Nazrudeen Jahoot.
guilty in the Berbice High Court.
Justice Reynolds had earlier taken about two hours to sum up the evidence to the jury, guiding them on various aspects of the law. The jury then took just over two hours, having retired around 12:00hrs and returning just after 14:00 hrs. The foreman answered in the affirmative when he was asked if the jury had reached a unanimous verdict.
When asked by Justice Reynolds whether he had anything to say, the accused answered in the negative.
Defence Counsel Attorney at law, Charrandass Persaud, then asked the court to exercise some leniency on the accused. He stated that his client was under 18 and a juvenile at the time when the crime was committed.
In response, prosecutor attorney at law, Prithina Kissoon, stated that the prosecution’s burden was to prove the case. She stated that the accused was 17 at the time of the commission of the crime and he was not a juvenile according to the Young Offenders Act. She also stated that the penalty for such an offence was laid down by statutes.
Justice Reynolds then ruled that the accused would be sentenced as an adult. The entire court was asked to rise as the judge announced, “You have been found guilty of the offence of murder and are to be taken to a place of lawful execution and hanged by the neck until you are dead. May peace be on your soul.”
His mother, Bibi Rahaman, who was in court, broke down in tears as the accused, who was also emotional, was lead away by a prison guard.
Kemlall Mangal was stabbed to death around midday on August 25, 2008 during a fight with the accused. The men ended up in a trench, where Mangal was stabbed repeatedly. He allegedly came out of the trench and sat on a bench under a shed in front of his house where he bled to death. He was found in a sitting position.
The accused, who was 17 at the time of the crime, fled to Lethem and was cohabitating with the victim’s daughter in Lethem when he was arrested. He gave a statement telling the officers how he killed ‘Ochro.’
The accused was having an affair with the 14-year-old daughter of the dead man, much to the displeasure of her parents. The two used to meet secretly and the accused was accosted on a number of occasions by the girl’s parents.
A number of relatives of both the accused and the deceased were in court.
Murdered: Kemlall Mangal
The case brought an end to the session which saw five convictions from six completed matters. There were three death sentences and one committal at the pleasure of the court.
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