By Mia Anthony
Justice Navindra Singh yesterday sentenced Sitaffa Joseph and Rickford Marcus to life imprisonment for the October 2020 murder of Seon London.
The sentencing came after an emotional hearing in the High Court in Georgetown.
Defence attorney Leslie Sobers argued that the pre-sentencing reports were inadequate, noting that his clients had not undergone psychiatric evaluations. Sobers said that Joseph was under the influence of psychotropic substances at the time of the killing, impairing his judgement. He also highlighted that Marcus had completed anger management courses in prison and expressed remorse for his role in the crime.
State Prosecutor Madana Rampersaud presented a victim impact statement from London’s mother, who described the family’s ongoing trauma. She noted that London’s six-year-old daughter continues to ask about her father. London’s mother also alleged that the accused had previously attempted to kill her son before succeeding in October 2020.
Rampersaud urged the court to impose the maximum sentence, citing the calculated nature of the crime and the suffering endured by the victim, who died from multiple gunshot wounds. The prosecutor argued that the evidence showed the intent to rob London and emphasized the severity of the offence.
Before the men were sentenced they were given the chance to say something to the court and both apologized for the roles they played, with Joseph saying he has served four years imprisonment for a crime he did not commit.
Justice Singh sentenced both men to life imprisonment, with parole eligibility set at 43 years. The judge cited the premeditated nature of the act and the defendants’ prior convictions as aggravating factors. He noted the absence of mitigating circumstances and added five years to their sentences as a result.
Initially, three men were charged with the murder in 2020. However, Joseph and Marcus were the only ones committed to stand trial. The third accused, Kevin Jordon, was acquitted.
According to a police report in 2020, London and his wife had visited a friend in ‘C’ Field, Sophia, on the evening of October 11, 2020. While London’s wife left to purchase food, he and the friend remained seated on a bench outside the friend’s yard.
About an hour later, two suspects armed with handguns approached and fired multiple rounds at London before fleeing the scene. London succumbed to his injuries, which included multiple gunshot wounds and severe haemorrhaging.
Police also disclosed that one of the suspects and another man had allegedly shot London in May 2020 in Cummings Park, resulting in his hospitalization.
