By Breaking Belize News Staff: Maurice Usher Jr., 42, has been sentenced for manslaughter in connection with the death of Crooked Tree resident Geoffrey Crawford, whose decomposed body was found in a shallow grave days after he was reported missing.
Usher Jr. was initially charged with murder but pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter in the High Court on February 5, 2026. He had pleaded not guilty to murder.
Late Tuesday evening, Justice Derick Sylvester handed down the sentence in the High Court. The court used a starting point of 22 years but, after considering aggravating and mitigating factors, Usher’s early guilty plea, and the time he had already spent on remand, he was told he has 10 years and 9 days left to serve behind bars.
Usher’s mitigation plea had been heard on April 15, 2026, when he asked the court for mercy.
Crawford was killed on September 29, 2021, at Mile 31 in Crooked Tree Village along the Philip Goldson Highway. He had been reported missing from his home, located near the Crooked Tree junction, and his red Nissan Pathfinder was also missing.
According to the case background, a neighbour told police that he had helped two men jump-start Crawford’s vehicle. The neighbour reportedly believed the men were Crawford’s relatives or close friends at the time. However, as the men drove away, the neighbour allegedly saw Crawford lying unconscious in the back seat with injuries to his head. The men then drove off in Crawford’s vehicle, and the neighbour contacted police.
Police later recovered Crawford’s body in a shallow grave.
A second suspect, Patrick Lloyd Young Jr., 31, a sanitation worker of Sabal Community, Dangriga, was later arrested and charged in connection with the case. Young was arraigned in the Belize City Magistrate’s Court on October 3, 2025. His matter remains before the lower court, where a preliminary inquiry has not yet been held to determine whether he will stand trial in the High Court.
The post Maurice Usher Jr. has 10 years, 9 days left to serve for manslaughter of Geoffrey Crawford appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
By Breaking Belize News Staff: Maurice Usher Jr., 42, has been sentenced for manslaughter in connection with the death of Crooked Tree resident Geoffrey Crawford, whose decomposed body was found in a shallow grave days after he was reported missing. Usher Jr. was initially charged with murder but pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of
The post Maurice Usher Jr. has 10 years, 9 days left to serve for manslaughter of Geoffrey Crawford appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
