Collin Jackman, a 24-year-old resident of Tuschen, was sentenced to 18 years of imprisonment on Wednesday, following his guilty plea in the 2021 murder of 59-year-old Keith Richard Hohenkirk, an amputee, during a drug-induced robbery.
Jackman entered his guilty plea last month at the High Court in Demerara, presided over by Acting Chief Justice Navindra Singh. He was represented by attorney Madan Kissoon, while the State was represented by Counsel Geneva Wills, Counsel Christopher Belfield, and Counsel Simran Gajraj.
The case details reveal that Jackman and Hohenkirk, who were acquaintances living in the same community, conspired about a week prior to the murder to drug and rob Hohenkirk using “molly,” a psychotropic substance. On October 23, 2021, they mixed the drug into a bottle of Banko wine and took it to Hohenkirk’s home.
That night, the group forcibly entered the residence, tied Hohenkirk up, and used a sheet and scotch tape to gag him. Jackman then assaulted Hohenkirk multiple times in the face and head while the accomplices searched the house and shop, stealing snacks, beverages, and cash.
Later, Jackman and one accomplice returned to the scene and found Hohenkirk motionless and cold but proceeded to rob the shop again before fleeing the area. Police discovered Hohenkirk’s body the following morning, October 24, 2021, found face up with his hands and mouth bound, in a room that had been ransacked. He was pronounced dead shortly after being taken to the Leonora Cottage Hospital.
Jackman was arrested two days later. In a caution statement, he confessed to being involved in the plan to drug and rob Hohenkirk and admitted to striking him during the assault. A post-mortem examination conducted by Government Pathologist Dr. Nehaul Singh confirmed that Hohenkirk’s death resulted from a subdural haematoma due to blunt trauma to the head, compounded by compression injuries to the neck.
