“TO God be the glory,” were the words of Aaron Hing, after he was convicted and handed the death sentence for the brutal murder of his teenage godbrother, Dominic Bernard, whose lifeless body was found in a shallow grave at Kildonan Village, Corentyne, Berbice.

Hing, called “Neutral” was sentenced by Justice Sandil Kissoon at the Berbice High Court on Friday.  He had pleaded not guilty to the capital offence of murder, which had alleged that he killed Bernard on October 14, 2015, at Kildonan Village, Corentyne, Berbice.

A 12-member jury, after deliberating for almost two hours, returned with a guilty verdict.

Hing, in his address to the court, said “To God be the glory.”

During the hearing, special prosecutor Latchmie Rahamat called on the teen’s mother, Linda Bernard, to read a victim impact statement, via zoom, from the United Kingdom.

“What a lowlife coward you are. You throw my boy into the grave you dug and you buried him. You are a father…my son’s life was taken in a heinous way. You are a fool and a liar who will never know freedom again. You are a murderer,” the grieving mother said to Hing.

Meanwhile, the teen’s father, Andrew Bernard told Hing, “You are a liar, you are a coward and you are a murderer. If you are prepared to do the crime, you should be able to do the time.”

Hing’s attorney asked the judge for sentencing to be deferred to facilitate a probation report. However, the judge told the attorney that the report would not assist his client in the sentencing.

In his sentencing remarks, Justice Kisson told Hing, “You are unfit to dwell among other human beings.” He later imposed the death sentence onto him.

Initially, Hing had opted to plead guilty to the crime and told the court that it was his co-accused, Staymon George, called “Sherwin”, who killed Bernard. However, Justice Kissoon had refused to take the guilty plea since Hing’s claims had contradicted the prosecution’s facts. As such, Hing was tried before a jury.

Recently, George pleaded guilty and was sentenced by Justice Kissoon to life imprisonment with the possibility of parole after serving 35 years.

Meanwhile, Hing’s ‘childmother’, Krystol Thomas; her mother, Sinfine Henry, also known as “Coreen,” and his friend, Jahmil Sinclair, who were granted $300,000 bail each after being charged as an accessory in relation to Bernard’s murder, are expected to stand trial soon.

The teenager reportedly arrived in Guyana on the evening of October 14, 2015.  George, who is said to be a close friend of Hing, was the driver who transported Hing to the airport to collect Bernard. The teen was scheduled to fly back to England on November 5, 2015.

After collecting the teen from the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, they stopped at a location on Sheriff Street where they ate and drank a few beers. Bernard was never seen again. His parents came to Guyana, after he failed to arrive home.

On January 8, 2016, the badly decomposed body was found in a shallow grave in the backlands of Nurney Village. A DNA sample taken from the body was tested against Dominic’s father, and they matched.

The police later issued an arrest warrant for Hing and George after they disappeared when investigators attempted to contact them.

Hing was arrested while hiding out at a city hotel, while George was nabbed at a house in Tucville, Georgetown. It is alleged that those charged with accessory hid Bernard’s personal belongings, including his camera.