Killer jailed for at least 35 years for double murder

(CNS): Wayne Bellafonte (34) from North Side was jailed last week for life following his conviction in September for the murder of Mark Andre Ebanks (36) and Eldon Charles Walton (55) outside the Globe Bar on Martin Drive, George Town, over three years ago. Bellefonte was also convicted of the attempted murder of a third man and possession of an unlicensed firearm. He will serve at least 35 years before being eligible for parole for his part in the double murder.

Bellefonte, a resident of North Side, was one of at least two men who opened fire on a group of men standing outside the bar on the evening of 1 July 2021, though he still denies having anything to do with the gangland-style killing in which a total of 31 shots were fired.

On the night of the murders, at least one person who was outside the bar when Bellefonte and his accomplices opened fire was also armed and returned that fire. Bellefonte was himself shot by the return fire, though he claimed he was never at the Globe Bar.

He said he had gone to West Bay to buy a substantial quantity of weed and had left his car with an associate while he conducted his drug business. He claimed that when he left the West Bay location, he had set off to look for his vehicle but was robbed of the cash and drugs he had just bought by an armed robber who shot him and left him on the road.

However, the crown’s case against Bellafonte linked him to the crime through his DNA found inside one of the two vehicles used by the killers, one of which was registered to Bellafonte’s mother, and cellphone data evidence that matched the movements of both vehicles.

The murder weapon has never been found, and Bellefonte has never revealed his accomplices in the double murder and the attempted murder. Ebanks was killed instantly that night, and Walton died two weeks later. The court heard that the third victim, who has since recovered, lives in fear for his life because at least two men who tried to kill him for what he said was no reason remain free.

As she handed down the lengthy jail time, Justice Cheryll Richards described the killing as a premeditated public attack, aggravated by the use of several vehicles and guns and the efforts of the killers to conceal evidence.

“This kind of activity cannot be tolerated in a modern society,” Justice Richards stated as she handed down Bellefonte’s life sentence.