Murder case offers a degree of comfort

A recent murder conviction has provided some hope for those left behind after a separate, unsolved case.

Michael Phillips was murdered in October 2012 but his killer/s have never been caught. A loved one told us that she derived some comfort from the recent conviction of Rickai Dickinson, 29, and Wolda Gardner, 34, for the premeditated shooting death of the Jamaican national George Lynch, in 2010. 

Mr Lynch, a father-of-three, was visiting the home of a friend when he was struck by a bullet just hours after the latter had given evidence in a Supreme Court trial. Testimony from a former friend of one of the accused named another man as the intended target, not Mr Lynch.

The loved one of Mr Phillips, who asked not to be named, told the Sun: “I felt some relief for the family but it also made me angry. It’s been four years. It’s been agony every day. I know exactly how it feels to not know. At least now they [loved ones of Mr Lynch] can sleep. They will never get their loved one back but at least they know who did it and that justice has been served.”

Mr Phillips’ killer/s are yet to be found and it is rumoured that two men rode up to him on a cycle, and shot him. 

“We are still waiting for them to find out who killed Michael,” the woman said, “ but I am glad that one less family is going through what we have been going through for the past two years. Still, no motive has been found for why he was murdered. Just hearsay.

“... It’s really torture, especially for his mother. If he was living a certain lifestyle, this would be easier to swallow. We don’t know what he was killed for. There are constant memories that bring out emotion. Every time we see his children or even one of his friends, it sparks some sort of memory.”

Living in a small community does not help: “You hear the stories, you don’t know what’s true or what’s false. You can listen to the talk and take it in but you just don’t know. 

“And sadly, that’s what the police have to go on sometimes; hearsay. And that’s hard because Bermudians gossip anyway. It’s very hard.”

The woman echoes a message stressed by police: “If you know something, take it to the police. Take them firm evidence.”

Does she believe justice will be served? “It may not be in the courts but definitely by God in one way or the other.”