Marc Angoy, who in 2015 had opened fire on his ex-lover Shelly Norton’s Eastville Housing Scheme, East Coast Demerara home, killing the woman’s one-year-old granddaughter as a result, was yesterday sentenced to 14 years behind bars.
Initially indicted for murdering the child, Angoy copped to the lesser charge of manslaughter when he appeared before Justice Navindra Singh at the High Court in Georgetown yesterday morning.
Following the ceremonial opening of the April criminal session, a teary-eyed Angoy accepted that on October 18th, 2015 he unlawfully killed one-year-old Arian Gill.
He also pleaded guilty to charges of feloniously wounding the toddler’s 12-year-old aunt, Ashley Wellington, who was also hit by gunfire, sustaining injuries to her left foot. Particulars of that offence stated that Angoy wounded Wellington with intent to cause her grievous bodily harm, or to maim, disfigure or disable her.
In his brief address to the court, the 48-year-old father of three, in a barely audible tone, said that he was “really sorry for what happened.”
In mitigation on his behalf, defence attorney Mark Conway begged the court to be lenient with his client, asking that consideration be given for his acceptance of responsibility for his actions, thereby saving the court considerable time in otherwise having to conduct a trial.
He advanced, too, that not only was his client sorry for what he had done, but that he had been a prisoner of good behaviour and had not been in any trouble while behind bars.
For her part, however, Prosecutor Tuanna Hardy asked the judge to consider that Gill was merely one-year-old, when she met her demise at the hands of Angoy, who had gone to her grandmother’s house and fired indiscriminately.
Hardy noted that Gill was hit and killed, while Wellington also sustained injuries. “Let the sentence reflect the crime,” the prosecutor asked.
Justice Singh told Angoy that a “loss of temper” and “too much anger” seemed to have been at play in the events which culminated in the tragedy of the day in question.
Against this background, he admonished the offender to take advantage of any anger-management classes offered by the prison, in order to develop the necessary skills which would help him to cope after his release.
Justice Singh said that the case was not “one of the regular cases,” while pointing out that it was fueled by loss of temper. “But look at where this anger has gotten you,” the judge told Angoy, who shook his head.
For the child’s killing, Angoy was sentenced to 14 years in jail, while for wounding Wellington he was sentenced to eight years. The judge, however, ordered that the sentences be served concurrently. Additionally, an order was made for remission on the time the offender would have so far spent in prison awaiting trial.
Angoy had reportedly confessed to have been targeting Norton in the attack, which saw Gill being shot in her back and Wellington in her left foot when he opened fire through a window.
The man had previously shared a three-year relationship with Norton but she ended it just over a month before the shooting, due to continuing abuse.
Angoy had reportedly told police that he got very angry when he found out Norton had obtained a restraining order preventing him from coming into contact with her, since he had assisted her financially and helped build a foundation for her life during their time together.
Norton had previously told this newspaper that she was at home with Gill and Wellington and both the doors of the house were tightly secured. She had said that she was resting in her bedroom, while the children were in the living room watching television when she heard several gunshots.
Ariel Norton, mother of the dead toddler, said that at the time of the incident she was cooking in the kitchen. “I was cooking and I hear the gate open. When I push my head out of the back door and I see he [Angoy] coming towards the door,” the woman said, before adding that she sensed that something was not right and she hurriedly secured the door. “…After he realise he can’t come in from there, he walk to the window and push he hand then I just start hear shots,” she added.
She said she remained in the kitchen, frozen with shock, while shots were fired in the direction of her sister. “I heard baby [Arian] crying and I saw Ashley running with she in she hand to the bedroom where mommy [Shelly] was. Then I just see them running to cover in the bathroom,” she recalled.
She said after the shooter escaped, she rushed to her child and saw her bleeding from the shoulder.
When asked if she was aware that her mother was in an abusive relationship, Ariel had said yes, before adding that she had tried many times to get her out of it but Angoy always found a way to get back to her. She said while she and her family were fearful, they never expected things would have reached such an extent.
