Fashion designer and photo studio operator 37-year-old Cornelius Robinson, who pleaded guilty to the murder of 14-year-old schoolgirl Santoya Campbell, was sentenced to life when he appeared in the Westmoreland Circuit Court yesterday.
The businessman, of a Shrewsbury, Westmoreland, address, will become eligible for parole after he spends 25 years behind bars.
Prior to handing down the sentence, Justice Martin Gayle gave Robinson an opportunity to speak. During his address to the court he broke down in tears as he apologised to family members of the deceased, as well as people who he said “looked up to him”.
On Tuesday, January 27, Santoya’s body was found in garbage bags under a bridge, near a river close to the Frome Technical High School, where she was a grade eight student.
Subsequent post-mortem results, which proved that the young student was pregnant, also showed she was strangled.
Two days after the discovery of the body, Robinson turned himself over to the police, in the company of his attorney.
He was afterwards charged by the Westmoreland police after admitting to the murder.
The matter was first called up in the Savanna-la-Mar Resident Magistrate’s Court for mention on Tuesday and Wednesday, last week. The case was subsequently transferred to the Westmoreland Circuit Court where Robinson was sentenced yesterday.
A remorseful-looking Robinson, clad in a pair of blue jeans pants, blue and white plaid shirt, and a pair of Levi sneakers, held his head down throughout most of yesterday’s procedure.
The court heard that Robinson, who had no previous conviction, admitted to the police and the probation officer that he knew Santoya, who lives in the same community as himself, since she was attending primary school and that her mother asked him to assist her with lunch money, to which he agreed.
Robinson claimed that the young schoolgirl, who used to visit his photo studio, started to make sexual advances on him to which he finally yielded once between late September and October 2014.
He also claimed that he was blackmailed by Santoya who started to make demands, including that he buys her a smartphone, to which he agreed.
Robinson said that before Santoya went to school on the morning of January 26, she visited his business place in Savanna-la-Mar where she aggressively demanded $6,000 to purchase the cellular phone.
He claimed that when he told her he did not have that amount of money she became boisterous and threatened to report their relationship to her mother and Robinson’s wife.
It was at that time that Robinson said he became frustrated and held the little girl from behind and strangled her to death.
He confessed that he hid the corpse in a back room of his businessplace where it remained throughout the day while he conducted his regular business.
About 11:00 that night, he transported the body, which he placed in two garbage bags in the trunk of his motor car and dumped it under the Cabaretta River bridge, near to the girl’s school.
Yesterday, Robinson’s legal representative, Herman Smart, who pleaded for mercy for his client, pointed to the social enquiry report which painted Robinson, as a well-behaved individual, who acted out of character. He also stated that his client did not waste the court’s time.
But, Justice Gayle, in handing down judgement, reminded Robinson, who is married with one child, that he took two young lives, including that of the unborn foetus.
That is just sick to be with a 14 year old as a grown man. Imagine, the girl ask for $6,000 him shoulda just give her the money mek she gawn. Now the girl dead and him in prison leaving his wife and young child with no male figure….smh. There must be more to it than the demand for $6000.Maybe its the pregnancy.
She probably threaten fe tell him wife bout di pregnancy an im neva want that fe ruin him marriage life…still no reason tuh kill ah young girl, much less breed ar…
WHAT HE DID WAS WRONG. HE SLEPT WITH HER WHICH WAS WRONG AND HE KILLED HER WHICH WAS ALSO WRONG. I’M NOT SAYING IT IS IS UNGORGIVABLE BECAUSE GOD IS A FORGIVING GOD……BUTTTT I HAVE A FEW COMMENTS BASED ON THE STORY I HAVE READ
As parents, we know what our children are doing whether it’s by seeing with our own two eyes or by parental instincts. So this mother knew that her daughter was f**king long before this man. Since things hard wid her, why she never tek the man to provide for her daughter then. She didn’t because she probably knew the man wouldn’t want her but would probably be more interested in her young beautiful daughter. So she figured the man would be more giving if him could get the daughter. The story didn’t say that the man was a relative or close friend of the child’s father (who maybe had died and this man took up his dead friends’ responsibility) So I’m assuming she jus draw fi the man in the community who have a likkle money. SMH I don’t mean to sound harsh but a so me see it. Now I’m not going to assume that this man was the father of the unborn child because of when he said he slept with her. He turned himself in and seems to be telling the truth thus far so if it was his child, the girl would more use the baby as blackmail rather than just threaten to expose their relationship. If she was pregnant the mother must have suspected. Not saying she knew for a fact but she must suspect some ting from the lack of period to the change Ina other likkle things. The man said he had agreed to buy her the phone so why she come again asking for $6000 fi buy phone. Why she couldn’t jus wait till him buy Di phone or give har Di money. This likkle girl knew what she was doing. I feel it for both their families. God know. But yuh see dem likkle girls nowadays mi sorry fi nuff a them. I do believe he acted out of anger and impulse because she go a Di man place of business a loud up har mouth. I don’t think it was premeditated even though what he did was wrong. God go with them all. Again…..I’m not condoning what he did but I can totally see how it happened. God please watch over our children.
AGRRED 100% she know what she was doing it just nuh mek no sense
He can say anything at this time but remember the girl is not here to defend herself. i don’t buy his story. A big ,an Whe don’t want young gyal don’t make a 14 year old persue him aggressively. I’m sorry I’m don’t believe him one bit. And she know what she doing foolishness is just foolishness. At the end of the day she is a child snd him cudda be her father and he took advantage of her. Many you g girl whe gwan so have already been abused by men just like him who come and tell the same kinda story bout how dem did want it. Same so the pedophile dem pon Oprah show did justify dem nastiness by saying the pickney dem came willingly yo them and allowed the touching etc. a pedophiles us a pedophile and this man is no damn different
Too bad in JA they don’t have executions. We would have less need for prisons, and the tax payers’ dollars could be put to better use than housing vicious criminals, such as this waste of a human being.
@Met, so on the prior post where someone mentioned the unborn baby was not the man’s in question, there is strong possibility that it may be true. If in fact the details are accurate, then its safe to say the child’s mother played a role in this tragedy as well. My God what a disturbing story?? Very sad from all angles.
Highly its disturbing to say the least but I believe most of what he said. When I saw her photo I was taken a back at how she posed. These mothers are not parenting and people are getting colder and colder. I don’t know how he could kill her then dismember her like that.. Mi nuh hear the mother come forward yet
Ah wonder why him even badda dismember her and she was pregnant…
fi throw it whey
The mother knows the role she played, that’s why she is silent. Her own conscience is killing her right as we speak.
So sad, unfortunately I knew about this all too well. My mother did this and the man tried to rape me, luckily I got away. two months later the man died of AIDS. I have hated my mother since but now with the help of church and my husband I forgave her and sent for her to live with me. My heart goes out to the families of both.
whether the girl made advances or the mother was a bad parent, the man was wrong in this situation because he had sex with the underage girl. If him did control himself then what she coulda blackmail him for?
Maybe his story of a blackmail for the phone is a lie. Maybe she got pregnant for him and she tell him she going to keep the child unless him give her X amount of money and he refused.
Not because somebody confess mean dem telling the truth. How would it benefit his case and his family if he told them that she was pregnant with his baby and she wanted to keep the child and he said no?
We don’t need Matlock to find out the motive here. Regardless of what the mother or the child did, he is solely to be blamed for having sexual relations with a minor……sick
I agree with the first part of your post about the man be responsible for the actual killing of the child. However, the parents (mother) must bear some responsibility IF she was aware of possible inappropriate contact between the adult and her child. As parents, we need to be vigilant of the children and to your best of abilities, know the where about of you children at all times. Children unfortunately do not understand the dangers there put themselves and it is up to us as adults to protect them as best as we can.
BTW, have you observe the behavior of some of these 14-16 kids in public? I never seen such behavior when I was growing in Jamaica. I’m certain others saw things between this adult and child that should have been reported to the police, as this could have same this child’s life.
I truly doubt anyone here is making ANY justification for what this man did..He committed a heinous crime and for that he deserves the time he got. However, other people played a part in this tragedy and you can say what u want but HAR MUMMA CONTRIBUTED TO THIS CRIME!! WHICH MADA INA DEM RITE MIND INDIRECTLY PIMP OUT DEM PICKNEY FI TINGS??..me wi pimp out meself fi feed my yute if that was MY plight…DI MUMMA WRONG TOO FOR THE ROLE SHE PLAYED ALONG WITH THE MAN THAT TOOK HER LIFE..THERE IS MORE THAN ONE GUILTY PARTY HERE..
Nuff a dem gal pickney ya nowadays nuh have nuh “broughtupcy”, as my Mother would say. Nuff a dem tek more cocks than porcupines have quills. (I’m not saying in this case, that is the case) However, I must say that this 37 – yr – old man had no business messing around wid a 14 – yr – old. He is the adult in this situation, and should have acted more responsible and mature. Sex with a minor under age 16 is statutory rape. He is old enough to be the girl’s father for Christ’s sake. I don’t know if the girl’s mother is a “careless” ooman, or if there were other issues going on in the home, but the fact is, this murderer was wrong for being sexually involved with this child, and killing her.
Dead man tell no tales, a one side story dis suh I caan sit fit fi believe him tales.
Dis grey tone bwoy nuh hab nuh business ah grine off di likkle school gyal. Him ah act like she grab him hood and push it eena har…while him deh deh helpless :hoax2 Whatever di situation him ah di adult, and him cross ah line weh big man nuffi cross. It get volatile and see di outcome deh….sad pon all angle :sorry
There are no words to describe this man and others like him who continue to hurt and dispose of CHILDREN in this manner. Didn’t know this situation could get any worse then I realized that this man also had an explanation.
This man has no credibility. Whether true or a lie, it doesn’t take away anything from what he did.
Good that he turned himself in. Too bad there is no punishment fitting the crime. He should save the stories for his prison buddies.