A Freetown man has been handed a 22-year custodial sentence for his role in the 2021 killing of Arthur James, whose charred remains were recovered in local undergrowth following his death. The penalty was issued on a Tuesday morning, weeks after a jury found Uroy Joseph guilty of acting as an accessory after the fact to the murder.
Joseph’s trial, overseen by Justice Ann Marie Smith, centered on his claim that he only participated in covering up the killing out of mortal fear. He told the court he arrived home to discover James bound and his two cousins — Zamir and Obasic Ogarro — armed with firearms. According to his testimony, he had no intention of joining the plot, but the cousins threatened to kill him if he did not comply with their demands.
Joseph recounted that he was forced to help move James’ body into a vehicle, before being ordered to carry out additional tasks with a second car. He also asserted that he reached out to law enforcement soon after the incident, cooperating fully with investigators and sharing key details about how the murder unfolded. Prosecutors confirmed during the proceedings that Zamir Ogarro, Joseph’s cousin, was the primary attacker who fatally struck James in the head with a pipe, an act Joseph claimed to have witnessed firsthand.
Originally, Joseph was set to stand trial alongside both Ogarro cousins, but the pair died before the case could go before a jury. Despite Joseph’s claims of coercion and cooperation, the jury ultimately refused to accept his version of events, returning a guilty verdict that has now led to a decades-long prison term.