‘Birdman’ acquitted after five years on remand for murder

After spending five years on remand, Sedley Liverpool called ‘Birdman’ was on Friday freed of the charge of murder Justice Justice Brassington Reynolds upheld a no-case submission made by his attorney Ravindra Mohabir.

Liverpool was on trial before a 12-member jury and had pleaded not guilty to the offence which read that on June 1, 2015, at Nelson Street, Mocha, East Bank Demerara he murdered 23- year-old Terrence Lanferman.

The State was represented by Prosecutor Seeta Bishundial.

The defence, in its no-case submission, argued that the prosecution failed to provide sufficient evidence to prove its case against Liverpool.

Among other things, Mohabir said there was no nexus linking his client to the crime.

The judge agreed with the submissions and directed the jury to return a formal verdict of not guilty.

However, Prosecutor Bishundia gave an oral notice of the State’s intention to appeal the decision.

An emotional Liverpool broke down in tears during the virtual session after hearing the judge’s ruling.

In 2019, Liverpool’s co-accused and cousin Kenkassie Lynch was sentenced to serve 75 years by Navindra Singh after a jury found him guilty of the offence.

The prosecution case is that on the day in question, Lynch and Liverpool allegedly conducted surveillance on Lanferman’s house, which is located in the bottom flat of a two-storey building.

Lynch knocked on the front door and when Lanferman opened the door, he was shot dead.

His lifeless body was discovered lying on the floor in a pool of blood.  He received gunshot wounds to the neck and chest and was pronounced dead at the Diamond Diagnostic Centre East Bank Demerara.

The shooting allegedly stemmed from a feud between Liverpool and Lanferman, but Lynch reportedly admitted that he alone carried out the shooting.

Liverpool was arrested by police in 2017.