On Tuesday, June 9, 2026, a jury at the Berbice High Court found Anil Sancharra and Vinod Gopaul guilty of the 2020 murders of West Coast Berbice cousins Isaiah and Joel Henry. The proceedings were presided over by Justice Simone Morris.
The conviction follows a trial centered on the testimony of Akash Singh, a key prosecution witness. Singh testified that he accompanied both Sancharra and Gopaul to a marijuana camp in the backlands. He claimed that when the two cousins unexpectedly encountered the men at the site, an altercation ensued, leading to the fatal attack on the teenagers.
The mutilated bodies of 16-year-old Isaiah Henry and 18-year-old Joel Henry were discovered in the backlands of Cotton Tree, West Coast Berbice, in September 2020. The discovery sparked widespread public outcry and intense investigations.
Throughout the trial, both Sancharra and Gopaul adamantly denied any involvement in the murders. They rejected Singh’s testimony as false and maintained that they were not present at the crime scene.
During the trial, Gopaul raised allegations of police misconduct, claiming he was assaulted while in custody and coerced into signing documents. While he admitted to signing a caution statement, he insisted that the process was conducted under pressure.
The men were remanded into custody following the guilty verdict. They are scheduled to return to the Berbice High Court on June 26, 2026, for sentencing.
