November sentencing for man who killed missionaries
Published:Saturday | October 14, 2023 | 12:10 AMTanesha Mundle/Staff Reporter
THE ST MARY labourer who was found guilty of the murder of two American missionaries in 2016 is to know his fate on November 10.
The sentencing for Andre Thomas was scheduled for Friday in the Home Circuit Court before Justice Leighton Pusey, but was postponed after attorney-at- law Leroy Equiano requested more time to prepare for the sentencing hearing.
Thomas, who was further remanded, was found guilty of two counts of murder following a unanimous verdict in the Home Circuit Court.
Missionaries Randy Hentzel, 47, and 53-year-old Harold Nichols were found dead in St Mary between April 30 and May 1, 2016.
They were reportedly last seen alive when they left Tower Isle, St Mary, on motorcycles about 8 a.m. on April 30, to check on a house in Wentworth district, where they had planned on carrying out repairs as part of their outreach ministry in the parish.
Hentzel was first found with his hands bound and a gunshot wound to his head, while Nichols was discovered some distance away with a gunshot wound to the chest and six chop wounds to the head.
Thomas’ cousin, Dwight Henry, had pleaded guilty to the murder in January under a plea deal and was sentenced to life with a stipulation that he serve 28 years in prison before being eligible for parole.
MAIN WITNESS
Henry, who was the prosecution’s main witness in the case against Thomas, told the court that he had tied Hentzel’s hands and shot him in the head while Thomas shot and chopped Nichols, killing him.
Thomas, during his unsworn statement, admitted that he was present during the commission of the crime, which had shocked the nation. However, he claimed that he tried relentlessly to persuade Henry to leave the men, but his cousin insisted that he “affi make some duppy dis year”.
The court, however, heard that before providing information to the police, he claimed that he did not know anything about the crime and was at home when it happened.
He later changed his story, claiming that Henry was responsible for killing both men and that he only helped to tie Hentzel’s hands.
However, during the trial, he denied telling the police that he had bound Hentzel’s hands or had shown the police where the men were killed.
He contended that he went to the community to help Henry on the farm, and while there, Henry went to check on the bikes that he heard passing by.
HELD AT GUNPOINT
Thomas claimed that he was later summoned by Henry and saw one of the men being held at gunpoint by his cousin, who then ordered the victim to lie on the ground before tying his hands and shooting him in the head.
He further claimed that the other man ran off, and Henry, after firing at him and missing, chased him with a machete and a gun. He said he did not know what else happened as he did not follow them. According to him, he waited for about half an hour until Henry returned, claiming that his foot was tired and the man “sweat him” before they both went their separate ways.
But Henry told the court a different version in which he claimed that it was Thomas who fired at the man and that they both chased him.
Henry, whose murder accounts were also riddled with inconsistencies, claimed that he decided to come clean because of his guilt over the murder.
According to him, they had no reason for murdering the men, and it was a mistake.
He apologised to the family during his time on the witness stand.
Attorney-at-law Althea Freeman also represented Thomas.