Akash “Money” Singh, 26, on Monday pleaded guilty to two counts of manslaughter in connection with the deaths of brothers Joel and Isaiah Henry.
Singh, of Squatting Area, Zeeburgh, East Bank Essequibo, appeared before Justice Gino Persaud at the Berbice High Court, where he was represented by attorney-at-law Horatio Edmondson.
He initially pleaded not guilty to two murder charges but later changed his pleas to guilty to the lesser offences of manslaughter.
State Prosecutor Marisa Edwards told the court that Joel Henry, 18, and Isaiah Henry, 16, both of Number Three Village, West Coast Berbice, disappeared on September 5, 2020, after leaving home for the Number Three Village backdam. Their bodies were subsequently discovered in the area.
According to the prosecution’s facts, Singh was at a marijuana camp in Cotton Tree Backdam with co-offenders Vinod Gopaul and Anil Sanichara when the brothers were brought to the location.
The court heard that the teenagers were attacked with cutlasses. Singh reportedly admitted to chopping one of the brothers to the head and marking an “X” on one of the victims’ heads.
Singh also reportedly assisted in tying the bodies to horses before the camp was later set alight. The weapons and clothing were also disposed of.
Post-mortem examinations determined that both brothers died from haemorrhage and shock due to multiple incised wounds.
Justice Persaud requested victim impact statements, aggravating factors, a probation report, a prison conduct report and a psychiatric report before sentencing.
Singh is expected to return to the Berbice High Court on November 25 for sentencing.
Akash Singh Pleads Guilty to Manslaughter in Henry Cousins’ Deaths
