AT his sentence hearing, which is scheduled to continue next Tuesday, September 3, 2024, at the Georgetown High Court, Zibeon Williams, who has entered a guilty plea to the December 2021 killing of Joshua Ferdinand, will know how many years he has to serve in prison.
The 24-year-old former resident of Friendship, East Bank Demerara (EBD), made an appearance before Justice Zamilla Ally-Seepaul on Thursday.

During the hearing, the presiding judge heard an impact statement from Fredinand’s mother, reports from a prison welfare officer and psychiatrist, and submissions from attorneys from both sides (the prosecution and defence).
Initially charged with the capital offence of murder, Williams chose to enter a guilty plea to the lesser charge of manslaughter.

He acknowledged that on December 20, 2021, he had unlawfully killed Ferdinand. Around 20:30 hours on the night in question, Williams was imbibing at a shop located at Parcel 310 Friendship, when an argument broke out between him and the aunt of the deceased.
Ferdinand, who was 23 at the time, stepped in during the heated argument and shoved Williams into a nearby trench.

According to reports, Williams emerged from the trench, and, brandishing a knife, stabbed Ferdinand twice, once in the neck and once in the abdomen. After being taken to the Diamond Hospital at Diamond, East Bank Demerara, Ferdinand was declared dead on arrival.
The victim’s revealed that he was her eldest son during Thursday’s court proceedings. She described him as loving, peaceful, and incredibly supportive. Both she and her family members were devastated by her son’s death, she testified.
“This is still affecting us after all these years. This happened close to Christmas, and Christmas has never been the same for us,” Ferdinand’s mother said.
She declared that she had no mercy for the person who killed her child, and requested the court to punish Williams harshly for his illegal behaviour.

During the court proceedings, the prison welfare officer highlighted Williams’ good behaviour, and his participation in rehabilitation programmes, such as anger management classes.
State prosecution attorney, Padma Dubraj, for her part, recommended a starting sentence of 25 years, given the serious nature and prevalence of unlawful killings in society.
In doing so, she brought up the deterrence theory with the court, which holds that criminal sanctions serve as a deterrent to future offenders, as well as a means of punishing those who perpetrate the crimes.

Ferdinand’s death was characterised by Prosecutor Dubraj as violent, gruesome, and unjustified. The post mortem revealed that Ferdinand had suffered severe injuries, she pointed out.
She reminded everyone that the offender had committed the crime with a knife; a dangerous weapon, and that he had fled on foot without helping the injured man.

Williams apologised, and said he was “hurt” and “sorry” that he had killed someone while he was intoxicated, when he was given the chance to speak to the court. The repentant man pleaded with the family of the dead for forgiveness, and requested the judge’s leniency.
Ronald Bostwick, the killer’s lawyer, stated in a mitigation plea that his client had generally shown regret for the crime. He said that by admitting guilt as soon as possible, his client had accepted responsibility for his actions, and avoided the necessity for a drawn-out trial.
He emphasised that the evidence clearly indicates that Joshua had attacked his client, who was at the time “hopelessly drunk”.
Despite this, the defence attorney begged the judge to sentence his client in a way that would enable him to get out of prison and contribute to nation building. Williams will be brought back to court on Tuesday for the judge to impose a sentence.