Rasbert Turner, Spanish Town

Christopher Oliver, the 27-year-old man accused of the beating deaths of his mother and two brothers in 2006, was given seven years at hard labour when he appeared in the Home Circuit Court yesterday.

Oliver was sentenced by Justice Bryan Sykes more than three months after he pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the St Catherine Circuit Court.

The Crown led evidence that on September 21, 2006 about 10:00 p.m., Oliver visited his mother's home in Twickenham Heights, Spanish Town when an altercation developed. He is said to have used a sledge hammer and a knife to kill his mother Myrtle Oliver, 48, and brothers Omar Oliver, 14 and Oneal Oliver 17, students of Jose Marti and St Catherine High schools respectively.

He was not seen until the following morning when he was caught sleeping in his car in a St Catherine community. He has been in custody since.

In handing down sentence, Justice Sykes said Oliver, who suffers from a mental disorder, was not a threat to society.