Albert Jones Sr. Freed After Serving Time for Murder

Convicted prisoner, fifty-one-year-old Albert Jones Senior is tonight at home with his family after six years on remand for murder.  Jones pleaded guilty to manslaughter for the chopping death of Alaine Garcia whose body was never found.  Jones suffers from mental illness and alcoholism.  Today, when he appeared in the High Court before Justice Nigel Pilgrim, his prison sentence began at fifteen years.  Taking into account the time he has served on remand, as well as a six-year deduction, Jones was informed that he was a free man.  Following the outcome of the trial, we spoke with attorney Marcel Cardona who represented Jones in court.

 

Marcel Cardona, Attorney-at-law

“I believe it has been two years or more that we’ve been back and forth from court.  I believe that probably we’ve been to court maybe about forty times or more, back and forth on different matters along the way, but I am very, very pleased that today, Albert Emmanuel Jones Sr. has been granted his freedom by the Supreme Court, the High Court of Belize.  Justice Nigel Pilgrim has decided this morning that he believes that in Albert Jones’ circumstances, a sentence of six years is proper and given that Mr. Albert Jones has already served six years in jail, then it’s basically time served.  And Albert Jones was therefore ordered to be released immediately.”

 

Reporter

“Give us an idea of this murder that he was accused of and brought down to manslaughter.”

 

Marcel Cardona

“Well yes, this basically, he stood accused of the murder of a gentleman who, as the evidence demonstrated in the case or showed in the case, the very gentleman who he is accused of murdering was the gentleman who had physically abused his kid, Albert Jones Jr., about two and a half months earlier.”