A construction labourer who permanently blinded a maintenance worker by throwing cleaning fluid over him has been jailed for three years by the Grand Court.
Beno Rayvon McKenzie, 30, was sentenced by Justice Emma Peters earlier this month for his attack on Samuel Ritch at the Aura apartment complex on South Sound Road where they both worked.
McKenzie initially pleaded guilty to the lesser offence of assault causing actual bodily harm but later pleaded guilty to the more serious charge of causing grievous bodily harm when the extent of Ritch’s injuries became known.
The Grand Court heard that at around 7:30am on 29 Jan. 2024, Ritch was mopping the floor by the lift at Aura when McKenzie and a female companion walked on an area he had just mopped.
After Ritch took issue with them for doing so, an argument broke out between the two men. Ritch is said to have taken photographs of McKenzie, who demanded he delete the image and threatened to hurt him if he didn’t.
On hearing Ritch say that he had already sent the photos to his office, McKenzie then went to his car to get a bottle of pink liquid, which turned out to be H-7 degreaser, a heavy-duty cleaning fluid. He threw it at the cleaner, hitting him in the face, eyes and chest, the court heard, and continued the attack by repeatedly punching and kicking Ritch while he was on the ground. After the attack, Ritch managed to call an ambulance and he was taken to hospital.
Significant injuries
Medical testimony from doctors in Grand Cayman and Miami showed that Ritch had suffered chemical burns to his right shoulder and significant injuries to his eyes and chest, meaning that he is now permanently blind in his right eye and has lost some of his sight in his left eye.
In a victim impact statement, Ritch said that all aspects of his life have been changed. He can no longer drive or walk alone, and can no longer work to provide for his family.
After the incident, McKenzie told police that he admitted to the attack, but said he had been previously provoked by Ritch, who, he said, was acting out of a grudge against him. However, Justice Peters said that she could find no provocation from the complainant who had tried to avoid a physical confrontation.
Defending attorney Crister Brady said that his client went to get the cleaning fluid to arm himself, but hadn’t intended to use it, and when he did use it, that he hadn’t intended to throw it at his face.
Revenge attack
In her summing up, Justice Peters said, “This was a revenge attack for which the defendant deliberately armed himself against a man he knew to be unarmed.”
The social inquiry report said that McKenzie, who moved to Grand Cayman from Jamaica when he was 18 and had worked in the Cayman Islands, Australia and Jamaica since, was on island on a work permit awaiting renewal and was previously of good character.
At the time of the attack, he said he was suffering from stress over his wages and he also said that there had been tension between the two men for several months beforehand.
In passing down the sentence, Justice Peters said that there might have been tension between the two men but there was no evidence which amounted to provocation or to mitigate the sentence. The offence carried a guideline range of 3-6 years with a starting point of five years, but she had reduced the term to three years due to the attack being out of character, the defendant showing remorse and entering a guilty plea.
“I accept that this was a one-off offence for a man who has otherwise lived a good and useful life, but the serious consequences of this deliberate attack are such that the defendant must face a sentence of immediate imprisonment,” she said.
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