An Arouca man who was convicted at age 16 for murder was yesterday released less than six months before he was due to complete his prison sentence. Justice Anthony Carmona, presiding in the Port-of-Spain High Court, ordered that Leroy Andrews, now 36, be released after his attorneys and the state prosecutors agreed he was no longer a threat to society. Andrew's prison term was due to be completed by February next year because of good behaviour. Carmona stipulated that his early release was conditional and ordered that he live with his father. He also ordered that Andrews stay away from the village in Lopinot, Arouca, where the murder occurred, and that he visit a probation officer monthly.
During his plea in mitigation, Andrews' attorney informed Carmona that his client excelled in prison, completing CXC examinations and was now a trained tailor. Andrews was convicted in June 1993 of the murder of radiologist Marion Narinesingh, of Lopinot, Arouca, in 1991. Narinesingh was found dead at her home after being strangled with a vacuum cleaner cord, stabbed twice in neck and a pot of boiling water thrown on her. She was the wife of University of the West Indies (UWI) professor Dyer Narinesingh. Before the murder, Andrews was employed by Narinesingh to do odd jobs at her home on weekends.
Andrews was sentenced by trial judge Lennox Deyalsingh to serve a term of imprisonment at the President's pleasure. After appealing his sentence in February 2004, Justice Mira Dean-Armourer ordered that Andrews be imprisoned at the court's pleasure with periodic sentence reviews. On review in June 2006, Carmona ordered that Andrews serve a minimum of 28 years' imprisonment with hard labour, backdated to the day of his conviction before his release. Andrews was represented by attorneys Mark Seepersad and Gerald Ramdeen, while Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions Kathy-Ann Waterman-Latchoo represented the State in the matter.