(CMR) A man arrested for the gruesome killing of a young mother and her four children in Clarendon, Jamaica, last month has pleaded guilty to the murders.
The bodies of Kimesha Wright and her four children, Kimana Smith (15), Shemari Smith (10), Kafana Smith (5), and 23-month-old Kishaun Henry, were discovered inside their home with chop wounds and their throats slashed on the morning of Tuesday, 21 June by another relative.
Rushane Barnett pleaded guilty when he appeared before Supreme Court Justice Leighton Pusey on Thursday. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for Barnett, who, as a cousin, would often be at the Clarendon home, although he did not live there.
The court heard that “sometime during the night of the 20th of June going into the 21st of June between 12 midnight and 1 am, the accused used a knife to inflict several wounds to all five. After he had inflicted those wounds, he left the home and deposited the knife along with other items some distance away. Those items were retrieved and identified as items that belonged to the accused”.
According to a Jamaica Observer report, Barnett reportedly said he killed his cousin and her children because she had disrespected him in the days before the murders. He claimed that a customer had come to the premises, and he served the customer, but his cousin was upset and told him he was never to serve her customers. She then grabbed the cash from his hand and splashed water into his face. He said he was offended from that instant and subsequent interaction with his cousin led to the stabbings.
A funeral service for all five victims will be held on Sunday, 31 July.
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