Court dismisses appeal of Canje manslaughter convict

Daveanand Dhandharie
Daveanand Dhandharie

Daveanand Dhandharie, of Canje, Berbice, who was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to 23 years in prison, had his appeal rejected on Friday by the Guyana Court of Appeal.

The appellate panel, comprising Chancellor of the Judiciary (Ag) Yonette Cummings-Edwards, Justice of Appeal Dawn Gregory and Justice of Appeal Rishi Persaud, upheld the original conviction and sentence, ruling that there was no merit to the appeal.

The case stemmed from an incident on April 16, 2016, when Dhandharie who was only 18 years old at time  struck Omesh Seelall with a piece of wood, causing his death. According to court records, Dhandharie had been drinking at a wedding house before leaving to visit a nearby shop where he encountered Seelall.