Battered woman on bail for manslaughter charge graduates from cosmetology course, cops most improved student award

Jun 13, 2021 News

Kaieteur News- It was a triumphant day as 33-year-old Sandra Brescenio, completed a cosmetology course with a Diploma in Cosmetology that was created by the United Bridge Builders Mission Inc. (UBBM) in partnership with the International Organisation for Migrants (IOM) on Friday.
Kaieteur News had carried her story in a report that stated, that on April 12, 2020, at Canabali, Barima/Waini River, North West District, Brescenio stabbed and kille

A blissful Sandra Brescenio at the graduation ceremony.

d her reputed husband, Clarence Williams, after an argument turned violent; police had stated that he choked and threatened to push her head into a fire.

Williams had dragged his then pregnant, 32-year-old reputed wife, out of church to prepare a meal for him. Brescenio was cleaning fish with a knife when at the same time, Williams, under the influence of alcohol, had threatened to push her head into the fire. An argument ensued between the two and Williams was said to have choked the woman. In an attempt to save her and her baby’s life, she used the knife to stab Williams twice in the region of his groin – he later on succumbed to his injuries.

Brescenio was arrested, charged and granted bail in the sum of $350,000, which was reduced to $300,000 after an unrepresented Brescenio told the court that she is five months pregnant with no one to care for her children. The matter was then adjourned until July 7 of the same year. CEO and founder of the UBBM, Bonita Montaque, along with several volunteers and a few local businesses, all collaborated to raise the money and post bail for Brescenio.
On Saturday, 14 months later, Brescenio is now a proud cosmetologist with a Diploma in Cosmetology and proud mother of six. The course started on February 1 and officially finished on Friday, June 11. Brescenio was part of a cohort of 38 graduates, which consisted of 20 Venezuelan nationals and 18 Guyanese. Brescenio not only got a Diploma as a cosmetologist, but also graduated with the most improved student award.
According to Montaque, speaking at the graduation ceremony, the four months that followed the course’s commencement was a period of trials, experience and skills. Ms. Montaque told Kaieteur News that moving forward, the UBBM will be looking to give the women grants to start their small businesses in order to better their lives. In her address to the graduates, she said that they should never give up and that they are not a statistic and that their pasts do not determine who they are.