Man jailed for eight years over fatal Waterford stabbing

A 36-year-old has been sentenced to eight years in prison for killing a man who assaulted and racially abused him.

Juraci Da Silva (36), with an address at Park Lane Apartments in Waterford city, was found not guilty of murder but guilty of the manslaughter of James ‘Jay’ Banville by a jury at the Central Criminal Court last month.

Mr Banville died from a single stab wound to the heart inflicted at New Street in Waterford in the early hours of October 8th, 2016.

Da Silva, a Brazilian national, was also found guilty of producing a knife during an altercation but not guilty of assault causing harm to Conor Hogan.

Mr Justice Michael White sentenced Da Silva, who came to Ireland to work in a meat factory about a month before the fatal incident, to eight years for the manslaughter charge and five years for producing a knife.

The sentences will run concurrently and were backdated to October 8th of last year when Da Silva went into custody.

The judge said the unlawful killing fell into the “lower range of the highest category” of manslaughter and that the maximum sentence he might impose would be 14 years.

He said an eight yearsentence was “proportionate” when consideration was given to how Da Silva had twice been subjected to “very serious assaults” by the deceased and Mr Hogan, and that as a Brazilian with no English he would have a harder time in prison.

‘Tragedy’

He described the killing as a “tragedy of epic proportions” and said he had heard eloquent statements from the Banville family about the impact his death had on his parents, partner, children and siblings.

Mr Justice White said the first assault on Da Silva was accompanied by racial comments and the second by sexual comments “of a very damaging nature”.

He said that following the second attack on him, Da Silva was no longer under threat as the two men had moved on to another street. He had earlier armed himself with a knife and then decided to go after the two men. During the third and fatal confrontation, Da Silva did not try to run away, the judge said.

Taking into account all these factors, Mr Justice White said he had to take the view that this is a “very serious offence”.

He noted that through his profession, Da Silva had a knowledge of the dangers of knives but he had armed himself with one and was prepared to use it, which he did in a lethal manner.

He said there was no need for Mr Banville to die, leaving a grieving family behind. The judge further noted that Da Silva was a hard-working man with no previous convictions and had been out that night having a good time and did not show any aggression during the earlier assaults.

The legal teams have 28 days to lodge an appeal against the sentence.