‘Batty Shine’ pleads guilty to killing ‘Dry Shrimp’

Jun 23, 2016 Court Stories, Features / Columnists, News

Omar Bacchus, 23, called ‘Batty Shine’ of Bloomfield, Village, Corentyne, Berbice, was indicted for the 2008 murder of Chandradat Hemraj called ‘Sugar Boy’ or ‘Dry Shrimp or ‘Fry Fish’ or ‘Sunna Boy’.

Pleaded Guilty: Omar Bacchus

He appeared in the Berbice High Court before Justice Brassington Reynolds and pleaded guilty to the lesser court of manslaughter.
The accused through state appointed Attorney- at- Law, Perry Gossai, indicated to the court that he wanted to take a certain course of action which was not objected to by the Prosecution conducted by Attorney- at-Law, Stacey Goodings.
He then pleaded not guilty to the charge of murder, but guilty to the lesser count of manslaughter. He is to be sentenced later.
The case for the prosecution was that sometime between August 30, and September 3, 2008 at Bloomfield Village, Corentyne Berbice, Bacchus murdered Hemraj, 34. of Third Street, Bloomfield Corentyne, Berbice. The victim was found dead days after he went missing with his face down in a ditch at the back of a yard behind an abandoned house. He had left his home at Letter Kenny about three days earlier to attend a religious function a few villages away, but failed to return home. It is understood that he had returned to his home village, but instead of going home he had stopped at a birthday celebration a few houses from where he lived.
While he was there he was asked to purchase some cigarettes and was given a bicycle and $1,000 to run the errand. He never returned. It was reported that during that time he was attacked and beaten to death and was allegedly sexually assaulted. The $1,000 was stolen.
When his body was found it was semi-nude with visible mark of violence. There were indications that he was also sodomised. However, no marks could have been seen at the time due to the decomposed state of the body. He had no shirt on and his pants and briefs were around his knees.
During the night of the beating a neighbour testified to seeing the accused beating Hemraj. The incident occurred about 23:00 hrs in front of her gap. She had turned on her verandah light after hearing the sound of someone being beaten.
Blood was evident at the scene and indications were that Hemraj was dragged and thrown into the ditch.
His sister, called “Galsie”, had testified that her brother was mentally challenged; that he lived with her for eight years at Lot 243-244 Bloomfield. She spoke about the last time she saw her brother.
It was on August 29 when he left for a Jhandi around 6am at Letter Kenny. She did not see him again. She reported him missing on September 2. She said her brother was called “Fry Fish” and “Sunna Boy”.
A post mortem performed on the body by Dr. Viviknand Brijmohan, gave the cause of death as asphyxia due to drowning and multiple injuries.
Six persons were initially arrested and after intense investigation Bacchus was charged with the murder.
The Preliminary Inquiry was conducted at the Whim Magistrate’s Court by Magistrate Fabio Azore who ruled that a prima facie case had been made out.

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