Posted: Monday, October 20, 2025. 10:05 pm CST.
By Breaking Belize News Staff: Louis Gillett, 40, who fatally shot Kings Park businessman Alvin Godfrey during an armed robbery more than two decades ago, is now asking the Court of Appeal to reduce what he says is an “excessive” prison term.
Gillett was convicted in 2005 for the murder of the 70-year-old shop owner, who was gunned down inside his store, Godfrey’s Shopping Center, on 6th Street in the Kings Park area. He was initially sentenced to life imprisonment but was resentenced in 2024 to a fixed term of 29 years and 2 months by Justice Nigel Pilgrim, following the Gregory August decision requiring courts to replace mandatory life sentences with fixed terms or parole eligibility.
Appearing before a panel of Justices Minnet Hafiz-Bertram, Peter Foster, and Sandra Minott-Phillips, Gillett’s attorney, David Brandon McKoy, argued that the sentence was too severe. He contended that Gillett’s diagnosis of schizophrenia and his young age—just 19 at the time of the murder—should have warranted a lighter sentence. McKoy also compared Gillett’s case to that of Giovanni Villanueva, who received a 25-year term despite being convicted of a contract killing.
However, the Crown, represented by Director of Public Prosecutions Cheryl-Lynn Vidal and Crown Counsel Maria Santana-Nembhard, countered that there was no medical evidence linking Gillett’s mental condition to the crime or showing it affected him during sentencing. Santana-Nembhard noted that psychological evaluations indicated Gillett showed no signs of psychosis and fully understood his conviction.
The court has reserved its decision for a later date. Gillett, who has been behind bars for 20 years, will not be eligible for parole until he has served 25 years of his current sentence.
The brutal killing occurred on April 29, 2003, when Gillett entered Godfrey’s shop under the pretense of buying two bottles of stout. When Godfrey refused to open the cash drawer, Gillett shot him in the face and fled. Godfrey later died from complications caused by the gunshot injury.
At resentencing, Justice Pilgrim noted that Gillett had participated in only one rehabilitation program during his two decades of incarceration—something that could hinder any future consideration for parole.
The Court of Appeal is expected to issue its ruling on Gillett’s sentence in the coming weeks.
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The post Louis Gillett killed 70-year-old shop owner in 2005 but says life sentence is jail is ‘too harsh’; asks for reduced sentence, claims schizophrenia appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
Posted: Monday, October 20, 2025. 10:05 pm CST. By Breaking Belize News Staff: Louis Gillett, 40, who fatally shot Kings Park businessman Alvin Godfrey during an
The post Louis Gillett killed 70-year-old shop owner in 2005 but says life sentence is jail is ‘too harsh’; asks for reduced sentence, claims schizophrenia appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
