Guyanese to spend 30 years behind bars

The next 30 years of Ewart Jordan Bacchus’ life will be spent within the confines of Her Majesty’s Prison.

Justice Frederick Bruce-Lyle imposed the custodial sentence on the 24-year-old Guyanese last week Thursday at the High Court.{{more}}

A 12-member jury convicted Bacchus on November 29, 2007, for the murder of Dougal McBarnett on October 20, 2005.

McBarnett, 36, of Carib Village, Campden Park, was found along a by-pass road leading from Yambou to Argyle around 11 that morning with two bullet holes to his chest.

The evidence in the matter stated that McBarnett along with his Brother-in-law Brent Clement and Cauldric “Guts” Young of Campden Park, went to Diamond Dairy to sell Bacchus one kilo of cocaine.

Shortly after the deal was made, Clement and Young were on their way back to Kingstown when Young opened a compressed bag of money that Bacchus had paid them and instead of $18,000, there was only about $2000 with some newspaper clippings the same size as the money between the stacks.

Clement immediately tried contacting McBarnett, who had gone with Bacchus, by cellular phone, but McBarnett never answered.

Prosecutor Duane Daniel said that Bacchus only expected to deal with McBarnett that day. He added that after making the deal, he suspected that Clement was going to call McBarnett about the money. “When you heard that phone ring, your heart turned to stone.” Daniel said it was then and there that Bacchus made a decision to shoot McBarnett. “You couldn’t allow that to happen, so you took the gun and shot him,” Daniel pointed out.