Rawle Samuels, 29, who pleaded guilty to manslaughter for the brutal slaying of four-year-old Jamal Nedd, whom he had knifed to death at Buck Hill, Linden, in 2013, was yesterday morning handed a life sentence.
Imposing the sentence on a weeping Samuels was Justice Nareshwar Harnanan, who said the convict is not to be eligible for parole until after serving 30 full calendar years behind bars.
In justifying his decision, Justice Harnanan asserted that the court could not lose sight of the fact that violence was used against a child, as a result of which his life was snuffed out. For that, he said, Samuels had to be dealt with “condignly.”
Initially indicted for the murder of the child, Samuels had denied the capital charge two weeks ago, but admitted guilt on the lesser count of manslaughter at the High Court in Georgetown. His plea was accepted by both the state and court.
