MORE than 18 years after fleeing the country following the brutal killing of a gold miner, 45-year-old Michael O’lando Corrica has been slapped with a 13-year prison sentence.
The jail time was handed down by Justice Navindra Singh at the High Court in Essequibo.

Corrica, called ‘Tall Man,’ a former resident of Fourth Avenue, Bartica, pleaded guilty to the capital offence of murder. The case was prosecuted by State Counsel II Caressa Henry, while Latchmi Dindayal appeared as defence counsel.

The killing took place on February 18, 2007, at Arimu, Region Seven. At the time, Corrica operated a shop in the area while the victim, gold miner Oswald Joris — also known as “Buns” — was employed at a nearby mining camp. Both men were familiar with each other.
According to the prosecution’s account, Joris’ daughter was notified by a third party that her father had been severely injured. When she arrived at the scene, she found him lying in a pool of blood with multiple chop wounds on his body.

While the precise motive was not outlined in court, media sources indicate that the fatal altercation could have been the result of a fight over a woman.
Things escalated quickly and resulted in Corrica assaulting Joris with a cutlass.

A subsequent post-mortem established that Joris died as a result of shock and haemorrhage sustained from 10 incised wounds.
Corrica had left Guyana right after the incident and was on the run for more than 16 years.

He was eventually tracked down to French Guiana, deported, and arrested upon arrival in Guyana. He was charged with the offence in June 2023.
Corrica later confessed to the murder during a statement under caution to the police and denied having had any prior disputes with the victim.
During Corrica’s sentencing hearing, his attorney urged the court to consider several mitigating factors, including his early guilty plea, co-operation with the police investigation, status as a first-time offender and his expression of remorse.

On the other hand, Prosecutor Caressa Henry outlined several aggravating factors, noting that the act was deliberate, involved the use of a dangerous weapon and resulted in severe injuries to the victim.
She also pointed to the broader context of the offence, highlighting the prevalence of unlawful killings in society, the seriousness of the crime and the fact that Corrica fled the country after committing it.

Justice Singh weighed both the mitigating and aggravating elements in determining the sentence.
He also ordered that the time Corrica spent in pre-trial custody be deducted from the 13-year sentence.