Ninja Man to be sentenced today

Dancehall artiste Ninja Man and his co-accused are to be sentenced for murder today in the Home Circuit Court in Kingston.

Ninja Man, whose given name is Desmond Ballentyne, along with his son, Janeil, and Dennis Clayton were convicted last month for the 2009 murder of Ricardo Johnson in the Lower Mall Road community of Kingston.

READ: Ninja Man, co-accused found guilty of murder

Director of Public Prosecutions Paula Llewellyn said the incident with Johnson stemmed from a domestic altercation the day before his demise.

There was a fight, and Desmond Ballentyne and the co-accused returned the following day with guns and other weapons.

They chased Johnson and another witness through a fence, and, as Johnson tried to fend off the attackers, shots were fired and he was hit in the side.

He later died.

During the trial, the prosecution called a total of seven witnesses including three civilians.

The case, which was first mentioned in court in 2009, has had 17 missed trial dates and 23 mention dates in eight years.