Danny Mason to Remain in Prison Until Age 99 Under New Sentence

With the latest sentence handed down against William “Danny” Mason in the Belize High Court, the convicted murderer and kidnapper will not be eligible to leave prison until 2084. Today, Justice Nigel Pilgrim sentenced Mason to two concurrent terms of 24 years each, following his kidnapping conviction on May 9. While the sentences are to run concurrently with each other, they are to run consecutively with his 35-year-to-life sentence for the murder of Pastor Llewellyn Lucas. This means that the 24 years for kidnapping will not start counting until after Mason has served 35 years. Even if he is granted parole on the murder sentence after serving 20 years, Mason, now 55, would still not be eligible to leave prison until the age of 99. During today’s sentencing hearing, Justice Pilgrim referred to Mason as a “thug” and a gang leader, highlighting his command over others in committing the “terrorizing” kidnapping. The court found Mason’s actions to be a planned and premeditated act, not spontaneous. The judge’s sentencing factors included society’s interest, the significant harm suffered by the Friesens, and Mason’s role as a gang leader who used firearms and issued orders. Aggravating factors included the Friesens being detained in a place they believed safe, a breach of trust given their friendship with Mason and his wife, and the psychological trauma inflicted. Mason’s prior murder conviction and the proximity of the two crimes were also noted as disturbing. Despite mitigating factors, such as former employees testifying to Mason’s good character, Justice Pilgrim added three years to each count, bringing the total for each kidnapping charge to 24 years. The court noted the current sentences must reflect the seriousness of the overall offending and acknowledge the impact on two separate victims. We note that Mason had been found to have fraudulent documents for several other identities, including Rajesh Persaud, Rajesh Oulett, and Ted Oulett./////