Deadly fish shop brawl… Guard gets seven years for manslaughter

Sep 06, 2018 News

Mark Anthony Barclay

Mark Anthony Barclay, a 39-year-old security guard from Houston, Greater Georgetown, was on Tuesday jailed for seven years, over a fish brawl, which turned deadly on April 30 2016.
Barclay pleaded guilty to the unlawful killing of Gordon Ross, when his matter was presented in Georgetown High Court.
Barclay called ‘Red man’ was initially been on trial at the Georgetown Magistrates Court for murdering Ross. However, the charge was subsequently broken down to manslaughter.
According to reports, on the night of the incident, Barclay who is prone to stuttering, was provoked by the now dead man. As a result, the accused turned on Ross and stabbed him.
Ross, called ‘Black Boy’ was found on John Street, Georgetown, around 1:30am on April 30, 2016. He had stab wounds about his body, and was rushed by public-spirited persons to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation. There, he succumbed while receiving medical attention.
When the case came up for hearing before Justice Sandil Kissoon at the High Court on Tuesday, Barclay admitted to stabbing Ross outside White Castle Fish Shop on the aforementioned date.
While presenting the facts of the case, State Prosecutor Abigail Gibbs noted that the two men were dancing at the White Castle Fish Shop, Hadfield Street.
The Prosecutor related that Ross reportedly became upset because everybody liked Barclay‘s dancing, and he took off his belt and started hitting Barclay with it, causing him to fall to the ground.
Shortly after, Barclay pulled out a knife from his waist and a scuffle ensued between the two men.
During the fight, Barclay reportedly used the knife to stab Ross about his body before running away from the scene. An injured Ross was rushed to GPHC, where he subsequently died.
Prosecutor Gibbs noted that a post mortem examination later revealed that Ross died because of a single incised wound. Barclay accepted the facts provided to the Court.
In a plea of mitigation his lawyer, Brandon De Santos asked the judge to consider that his client has no previous convictions and did not waste the court‘s time.
“He has thrown himself at the mercy of the court your honour.”
In handing down the sentence, Justice Kissoon started with a base of 25 years.
However, after taking into consideration the early guilty plea; the time accused had been in prison pending trial, the fact that the victim was the attacker and it was not the first time he had attacked Barclay among other factors, the judge had the sentence broken down to seven years.

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