A St Catherine bus conductor who pleaded guilty to the murder of a seven-year-old girl was sentenced to life imprisonment in the St Catherine Circuit Court today.

He is Vivian Vernon of Portmore Villa, St Catherine.

Dead is Kadeisha Cousins, a student of Waterford Primary School in the parish.

In handing down the sentence, Justice Bertram Morrison said the crime was pre-meditated, heinous and barbaric, which the punishment must reflect.

He told the accused, who stood stoic in the dock, that justice must be served for the victim.

The judge said that those like minded should be discouraged from such wicked acts.

Justice Morrison said that Jamaica was suffering from criminality, therefore the sentence must reflect that the public was hurting by it.

He said although the Criminal Justice Administration Act allows that having pleaded guilty, the accused may benefit from a reduction in sentence, Vernon's case was not applicable.

“The public would not be satisfied if you benefit from a reduction in sentence, since you have a prior conviction for violence and there is premeditation and the aggravation is more than the mitigating circumstances," Morrison said.

He then sentenced Vernon to two years and 11 months for arson and life imprisonment for murder.

According to reports, on November 5, 2014, after burning down the house of his girlfriend (the child's mother), Vernon killed the seven-year-old Waterford student and dumped her body in the Rio Cobre.

He was subsequently arrested and charged with murder after several items, including the child's identification card, were found in his possession.

Vernon pleaded guilty to arson and murder while in court earlier this year.

He was represented by attorney-at-law Denise Hinson, who cited provocation as the reason for Vernon's actions.

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