A 56-year-old cane harvester was on Wednesday sentenced to life imprisonment with the possibility of parole after serving 30 years for the brutal murder of a man committed 23 years ago.
Deonarine Bhikari, of Enmore, East Coast Demerara, was sentenced by Justice Jo-Ann Barlow at the Demerara High Court.
Last month, a 12-member jury found him guilty of murdering his 49-year-old neighbour, Daniel Singh on May 21, 2000.
During the sentencing hearing on Wednesday, Bhikari’s probation report was read in court by a social worker, who detailed that Bhikari continues to maintain he was framed for the murder.
Among other things, the social worker said that the victim’s death severely impacted the lives of his children since they did not get to complete their academic studies due to a lack of finances.
Forced to fend for themselves, the social worker said that Singh’s children had to “suffer and struggle” to survive.
“I didn’t do the crime,” Bhikari said as he explained to the court that the victim was not only his neighbour but also his intended father-in-law.
The victim’s children provided a written statement which was read in court by special prosecutor, Konyo Sandiford-Holder.
“I believe that all these years my dad’s blood was crying out for justice for this crime. And I also believe that our family did get the justice we were looking for at the end of this case.
“No sentence can fill the hole that this tragedy has created by taking away my dad from us in such a sad way. But it does console the hurt I feel to know that the defendant will still be punished for this crime and has not gotten away with it scot-free.
“I do not hate the defendant, but I am hurt by what he did. My dad, Daniel Singh, was a kind-hearted, caring family man who went out of his way to make sure we had food to eat and that our basic needs were met. He reminded us daily that we must help to look out for each other. And those are the memories I cherish most about my dad,” the statement read.
Justice Barlow, in her sentencing remarks, stressed that the court must send a strong message that such actions will not be condoned.
“Such conduct must be met with a very strong rebuke from the court. Grown men in any community must assist in maintaining law and order and not behave like brutish beasts,” she said.
Singh was a single father who lived with his four children. On the day in question, the two men were involved in a confrontation because Bhikari was reportedly interested in one of Singh’s daughters who was in her late teens. Singh did not approve of the relationship.
Bhikari, who was in his 30s, attacked Singh with a cutlass while he was on the front step of his home, killing three of the family’s dogs and injuring the daughter and another dog in the process.
Singh’s young son had witnessed the attack and had seen the attacker chopping his father.
Bhikari had fled to Venezuela and went into hiding for over a decade, but he was finally arrested in Guyana in 2018 after returning home.
Finally justice has been served. If, as he claimed, he was innocent and was framed, why then he ran off to Venezuela, where he hid to evade justice, instead of remaining to protest his innocent. You do the crime then you do the time. Nuff said!