Twenty-eight-year-old Staymon George, one of several persons implicated in the gruesome murder of British teen Dominic Bernard six years ago, was on Wednesday sentenced to life imprisonment.
For the teen’s parents, the sentence does not compensate for the loss of their son.
“The loss of our son in such a violent way has impacted us,” Bernard’s mother Linda said at the sentencing before Justice Sandil Kissoon.
“Grief brings you together or it can tear you apart. It impacted us greatly and we have since divorced after 24 years of marriage. Our family home of 22 years has been sold.”
The victim’s father, Andrew Bernard, added: “Whatever sentence is imposed on Staymon George today, will never match the life sentence our family have received.”
George had confessed to the crime for his part in the murder of 18-year-old Bernard which occurred on October 14, 2015, at Kildonan Village, Corentyne, East Berbice. The murder was committed after George and another man had picked Bernard up from the airport on arrival for a three-week holiday.
A post-mortem showed that Bernard was struck to the back of his head and sustained a fractured skull and a broken neck.
Justice Kissoon, in his sentencing remarks, said that no human being should suffer from the “violent and savage” manner in which Bernard was killed.
“This (was) a deliberate and calculated inhumane act,” the Judge said, noting that the heinous crime had wreaked havoc and illness on Dominic’s family.
On Wednesday, George’s probation report was read out in court by a social worker during the sentencing hearing.
Dominic’s godbrother Aaron Hing is currently on trial before Justice Kissoon for the teen’ s murder.
Hing’s “child mother” Krystol Thomas, her mother Sinfine “Coreen” Henry and Hing’s friend Jahmil Sinclair are currently awaiting trial for the roles they reportedly played in the murder.
The British teenager arrived in Guyana on the evening of October 14, 2015 and he was scheduled to return to England on November 5, 2015.
But the teenager disappeared shortly after arrival. Hing became a person of interest after he went into hiding when the police attempted to contact him.
As the Police pursued the case, George was added to the list of suspects. They were both later arrested.
Hing was found at a city hotel and George was found at a house in Tucville, Georgetown.
They were arrested after the decomposed body of a male, believed to be that of the missing teenager, was discovered a few villages from Kildonan – the same community where he was expected to spend his time during his visit to Guyana.
The two later admitted that they picked up the teen from the Cheddi Jagan International Airport and on their way to Berbice, they stopped along Sheriff Street, where they ate and drank a few beers.
Sinclair, the other suspect in the case, took law enforcement officers to an area behind Nurney Village and pointed out where he had hidden equipment taken from the teenager.
Sinclair reportedly admitted that he was promised payment to hide the teen’s belongings on the night he was fatally beaten.
Bernard’s mother broke down in tears and said her life and family was severely affected by her son’s death.
“I had cocooned my son in my stomach for nine months and gave him life. I watched him take his first steps, climb the stairs and say his first words.
“Dom will not get engaged or married. He was so gentle and caring, he would have been an awesome dad,” she told the court.
She explained that after her son’s death she had overdosed twice and is diagnosed with depression, insomnia and post-traumatic stress disorder.
“I take nightly meds to help me to fall to sleep. I suffer frequent nightmares and broken sleep. I am very anxious in crowds and with sudden loud noises. My mental health is being managed slowly. I find it near impossible to recall memories of my son.
“As hard as I try, I cannot recall memories of raising Dominic, they have been wiped away and yet I was there every step of the way.
“My memory has been robbed and erased with trauma. This is distressing to me. I do not trust. I have a guard up constantly. I do not let anyone in and I struggle to build new relationships” she told the court while fighting back tears.
George could become eligible for parole after serving 35 years in prison.
