Double-murderer Darronte Dill's half-brother was killed in a horrific case of child abuse, and his father also died when he was young.

Dill's mother Donna-Mae Dill revealed details of his tragic upbringing as she faced the pain of losing him too to a life sentence in prison.

"It's very depressing for me. I've cried many nights. I've got nowhere to go. I feel empty, I feel lost, I feel like I'm struggling," she said in an interview conducted prior to him being found guilty yesterday of double murder.

Ms Dill and Darronte's father, Darren Dill, divorced. Mr. Dill later died of illness when Darronte was just six years old. They also have an elder son, Dahleno.

Ms Dill formed a new relationship with another man, with whom she had a third son, D'Shun. However, D'Shun's father killed him in December 1994 when he was just two years old, in what a US expert described as the worst case of child abuse she'd seen in 20 years.

Ms Dill requested that D'Shun's father's name not be published in this article. He was found guilty after a trial at the Supreme Court in 1997 and jailed for 14 years. Meanwhile Darronte, now 19, and Dahleno, now 22, were brought up in Fentons Drive, Pembroke, by their grandmother Lois Astwood.

"Darronte used to go to church with his nana in town and he still knew his momma," explained Ms Dill in this interview during the trial which could not be published for legal reasons until it finished.

"I can't really say how he felt about his father's death. But with a lot of things, Darronte keeps them in, he doesn't really talk to no one."

However, she described him as having a "bubbly" personality despite troubles in his young life.

"He's always playing, joking. He's a happy kid, normal. People that know him say he's happy and loving. When I heard he'd been arrested over the murders I wondered what could have happened, what went wrong. I had a lot of mixed emotions. I was very, very upset. To be honest I didn't know how to feel. I was hurt and didn't understand. It's the same for all of us his nana, his uncles and his auntie," she said.

Dill attended CedarBridge Academy but dropped out. According to his mother, he was trying to get into another school at the time of the killings, which took place three days before his 18th birthday. She also described him as being close to his uncle, Sergeant Dennis Astwood, a Police officer in the Serious Crime Unit the unit that investigated the murders.

"His uncle had nothing to do with the case. It's been very difficult for him," explained Ms Dill. She's also found it hard to deal with negative comments people have made about her son.

"I don't know how to respond to people. If people say the wrong thing to me I'm going to attack them because I want to protect him. I'm trying to hold myself together. I'm there for everybody. Certain things his nana can't take. His uncle can't take it it's hard because it's his job. My other son isn't really showing no emotion."

She's upset that although prosecutors acknowledged Dill may have acted with others in the killings, he's the only person who went on trial. "If he is guilty I feel that he did not do this by himself. But I feel that he didn't do it. We just have to wait and see," she said.

Prosecutors alleged during the trial that Dill is a member of the Parkside Crew and committed the killing to "prove" himself and be accepted as a gang member. He denied the allegation. Asked about this, his mother, who lives in St. David's, said: "My son always lived in town with his nana on Fentons Drive. Yes, he does know some people from Parkside because he lived up Fentons Drive.

"Whether he's part of Parkside I don't know for a fact because my son didn't live with me. (But if he is) does that mean he's a murderer?"

Ms Dill also believes that attending the trial every day led her to lose her job at the Juice and Beans café on Front Street. Ms Dill claims she told her employer, Angela Bean, that the case would be coming up when she first started the job on August 24. But she further claims that when she announced in November that she'd be off work for the duration of the trial, Ms Bean told her that would be a problem.

"As long as my son is on trial I'm going to be there, but they basically gave me an ultimatum between work and my son," she said. "I deal with customers. She tried to say that because of what the case is about it's going to affect me if someone comes in and says the wrong thing. She said she would prefer that I go to my son's case, but the job might not be there when I get back."

She added: "I understand it's a business but at the same time it's my son. Whether he's innocent or guilty I want to be there. I'm a mother and I want to be there for my son."

Ms Bean, the owner of Juice and Beans, confirmed that Ms Dill is no longer employed but told The Royal Gazette: "She was still under probation. It has nothing to do with the trial and we told her that."

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