16 years for killing wife with a stone

National

A MAN has been jailed 16 years for killing his wife.
Jerry Guye, from Hakwange village in Menyamya district, Morobe, pleaded guilty to murdering his wife who died after being hit in the head with a stone by him last year.
Guye was sentenced by Justice John Numapo in the National Court.
The court heard that the offence occurred at the defendant’s village on March 12, 2018, between 7am and 9am.
Guye was alleged to have an argument with his wife and threw a stone at her which hit her on the head, fracturing her skull and killing her.
The aggravating factors were that an offensive weapon was used, the intention was to cause grievous bodily harm and the prevalence of the offence.
The mitigating factors were that the defendant had entered an early guilty plea, had expressed remorse and had no prior convictions.
“You had an argument with your wife and threw a stone at her that landed on her head,” Numapo said.
“You said you had no intention to kill her and were very sorry for what you did.
“Did you ever think about the injury you could cause to someone if you used a weapon such as a stone to attack them?”
Guye’s pre-sentence report said he had six children and because of their mother’s death he was concerned about their welfare and had asked the court for probation and a good behaviour bond.
Numapo said the court had a duty to ensure that any person who killed another person was appropriately punished for the offence for justice to be served and for the perpetrator to be held accountable for his or her actions.
The court deducted one year and eight months from the sentence, taking into account the pre-trial custodial period with Guye to serve the balance of 14 years and four months.