ST. JOHN’S, Antigua, Mar 28, CMC – An 11-member jury Friday convicted 40-year-old musician, Shawn Mussington, of murdering Jamaican hairdresser, Simone Whyte-Barrington, nearly five years after she was stabbed at her workplace in the capital.
Whyte-Barrington, 45, was killed on November 14, 2020. The court heard she was stabbed in the chest by Mussington, who had earlier testified that he had been abused by her and blamed alcohol for his actions.
The court also heard that on November 3, 2020, less than two weeks before her death, Whyte-Barrington had filed a report with police in which she said that Mussington had threatened to kill her and himself.
The jurors were also shown pictures of the crime scene, with the blood-splattered wall, the bloody floor of a veranda, and the deceased’s body next to the alleged murder weapon, a brown-handled knife.
Mussington apologised in court, stating he truly loved the Jamaican national. He will remain in custody until his sentencing by Justice Tunde Bakre.
During the trial, both the prosecution and the defence painted contrasting pictures of Mussington with the Crown calling him a stalker while his attorney, Wendel Alexander, said he was a “boy toy held on a string” and having battered man syndrome.
The court heard that the Jamaican hairdresser died due to massive blood loss caused by a cut to her aorta and in her closing closing arguments, the prosecution described Mussington’s action as a cowardly sneak attack.
The prosecution questioned what legal justification Mussington had for killing his ex-girlfriend, recalling that he had threatened to kill her and himself 11 days before the incident. The crown said that he was obsessed with her and did not want to let go so he became dangerous.
“They had separated earlier, but he kept coming around. He was not letting go,” the prosecution said, dismissing his unsworn statement in which he detailed the abuse suffered at the hands of his ex-partner.
“He gave general statements; no timeline. Him being older than her is an excuse to kill her?. No one knows where he got the injury from. He told police that she sliced him with her knife then he stabbed her.”
However, the prosecution reminded the jury that video footage from the nearby Boardwalk Casino moments after the fatal incident did not show any cut to his neck, as he walked casually along.
“He was obsessed with her… Use your commonsense. Self-defence does not arise,” the prosecution said, adding that “he has not put forward a proper defence so he wants the jury to do it for him. He is guilty of murder”
But the defence attorney, told the jury that it was up to the prosecution to prove its case to their satisfaction, adding that the Jamaican woman treated his client as a “boy toy held on a string”.
He said that even dogs are treated better than how Mussington was treated.
“The relationship was more than tumultuous. Look at the evidence individually and pool your collective resources. As humans we can lose self-control, Alexander said.
“This was not just love…it was beyond love. He na get the luxury of a dog’s treatment. She used him every time she wanted something,” Alexander said, urging the jury not to view the case in isolation but to consider all the evidence.
CMC/ag/ir/2025