THREE men were, on Thursday, sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of 51-year-old Dhanpaul Dookie called “Pauline,” during a robbery at his Uitspa Village, Soesdyke-Linden Highway home, in 2017.

Chandrapaul Persaud, 50, also called “Raju” or “Duffy”; 61-year-old Heralall Ramdhan, also called “Baba” or “Roshan”; and Jagishwar Dhanai, 36, also called “Toto”, were sentenced by Justice Priya Sewnarine-Beharry at the Demerara High Court.

In May, they were convicted by a mixed 12-member jury.

During the trial, the trio denied involvement in the murder that occurred between July 24 and 27, 2017.

According to the state prosecutor, Dookie was killed during the course of a robbery, where he was severely injured with a knife and axe, while in a defenceless situation.
In their plea for forgiveness, each of the convicted killers expressed remorse and a desire to reintegrate into society to be with their families.

The prosecutor stressed the seriousness and prevalence of the crime and urged the court to impose the maximum sentence due to the wanton disregard for life displayed during the well-orchestrated crime.

Justice Sewnarine-Beharry, while narrating the facts on Thursday, revealed that Persaud had observed Dookie with a bag of $5,000 notes and conspired with the other two men to rob and kill him.

The judge highlighted the deliberate and premeditated nature of the murder, as supported by the three men’s police caution statements detailing their roles in the crime.

In considering an appropriate sentence for each convict, the judge took into account aggravating factors such as the prevalence of felony murder, emotional trauma to Dookie’s family, serious injuries inflicted upon the victim, and the fact that all three men were adults who should have been aware of the consequences of their actions.

Despite the convicts’ continued denial of guilt, Justice Sewnarine-Beharry recognised some mitigating factors, including their co-operation with law enforcement during the arrest, lack of prison infractions, and dysfunctional family backgrounds coupled with limited education and intellect that may have influenced their poor choices.

The judge concluded that only Dhanai exhibited genuine remorse for his criminal conduct. Consequently, all three convicts were sentenced to life imprisonment, with Persaud and Ramdhan eligible to apply for parole after 30 years, and Dhanai after 20 years.

Additionally, they were ordered to undergo various rehabilitative programmes, including literacy, anger management, vocational training, and behavioural change courses, supervised by the Director of Prisons.