Guyana: 25-year-old sentenced to life for brutal killing of partner amid dispute over phone password

Guyana: 25-year-old Linden Benjamin has been sentenced to life imprisonment after murdering his 31-year-old girlfriend Lisa George over a phone password. The 25-year-old security guard appeared before Magistrate Rushelle Liverpool on Friday at the Sparendaam Magistrates’ Court where Justice Priscilla Chandra-Hanif at the Demerara High Court sentenced him to life imprisonment with possibility of parole only after 30 years of serving.

According to investigative reports, Benjamin was charged with the capital offence of murdering George on April 26, 2023, at her ‘C’ Field, Sophia, Greater Georgetown home while the two were romantically involved and living together.

Benjamin and George were reportedly a couple that had been going out for a couple of months when Benjamin moved in with George and her two children, aged 6 and 12.

The 12-year-old son of George reported that Benjamin had a habit of abusing his mother and on the day of the murder he and his sister were sleeping in their mom’s bed when they were awakened by screams and noise of their mother asking for help.

While Benjamin was reportedly stabbing her at the time, the 12-year-old boy proceeded to rush out and alert other relatives in the home, who proceeded to where the two were and succeeded in removing the knife from Benjamin’s hand.

However, tragically George lost consciousness and died on the scene before the arrival of the authorities. When the authorities then arrived on the scene, they examined George’s body and pronounced her dead before taking her body for a post mortem examination where it revealed that the 31-year-old mother of 2 suffered and died from 25 stab wounds.

One of which penetrated her chest and severed her aorta, causing fatal blood loss.

Following George’s death Benjamin was arrested and after a preliminary inquiry, a prima facie case was established against him, and he was committed to stand trial at the Demerara Criminal Assizes.

He proceeded to appear before Magistrate Rushelle Liverpool at the Sparendaam Magistrates’ Court, where he was charged with the capital offence of murdering George on April 26, 2023, at her ‘C’ Field, Sophia, Greater Georgetown home.

On Friday, 5 December, prosecutors, attorneys Darin Chan and Latifah Elliot, presented the State’s case before the High Court, while Benjamin was represented by attorney Beulah Williams.

The court heard that Benjamin stabbed George 25 times during a domestic dispute after she refused to unlock her cellphone and sentenced him to life imprisonment, with the possibility of parole after 30 years.