One of three men initially implicated in the 2009 killing of fireman Patrick Daly, who was fatally chopped at Land of Canaan in 2009, has accepted responsibility for the role he played in the man’s death.
Appearing before Justice James Bovell-Drakes and a 12-member jury at the High Court in Georgetown, Errol Williams, called “Short Man,” yesterday said he was not guilty of murdering the fireman. However, Williams, 34, pleaded guilty to the lesser count of manslaughter for unlawfully killing Daly on Septem-ber 15, 2009 at Land of Canaan, East Bank Demerara.
The court will pass sentence on October 24, after hearing a probation report in the matter.
In 2013, taxi driver Kurleigh Goodluck, was set free of Daly’s murder, after a jury returned a majority not guilty verdict.
The state’s case against Williams, which he did not deny, was that he, together with two other persons, attacked Daly, who had been in a toilet in his yard, sometime after 5 on the morning in question.
Prosecutor Mandel Moore told the court that there was a misunderstanding between Daly and the men, who all shared the Lot 99 Land of Canaan yard, where the fatal attack occurred.
The court heard that Daly’s assailants, who were armed with cutlasses and other weapons, wrenched the toilet door open, forcing him to run out, before chasing behind him and chopping him severely.
Moore said that Williams, who fled the scene, was arrested six years after the crime.
A post-mortem examination revealed that the 30-year-old Daly died from haemorrhage and shock, due to multiple incised wounds.
He sustained six wounds to the left side of his body and one on top of his head, all caused by a sharp, heavy instrument.
Williams is being represented by attorney Maxwell McKay.
