Former Champ Trevor Berbick Found Dead

[chop]

Editor's Note: Police have now said that Berbick was murdered in his hometown in Jamiaca this weekend by an attacker swinging a machete or a hatchet, police said.

Berbick, 51, was discovered at about 6:30 a.m. Saturday morning with a gaping gash in his head in a church courtyard in Norwich Village, about 233 kilometres east of Kingston, police said.

Trevor Berbick, who lost his heavyweight title to Mike Tyson and was the last boxer to fight Muhammad Ali, was found dead Saturday in a church courtyard in his hometown, police said. He was believed to be 52.

After beating Ali in 1981, Berbick went on to win the WBC heavyweight title fours years later in a decision over Pinklon Thomas. His reign was short, however, as a 20-year-old Tyson knocked Berbick out in the second round of their bout on Nov. 22, 1986, to become the youngest heavyweight champion in history.

In his loss to Tyson in Las Vegas, Berbick was knocked down twice in the second round. After trying to get up from the second knockdown he fell another two times.

Berbick fought from 1976 to 2000, finishing with a 50-11-1 record, including 33 knockouts. He also fought for Jamaica at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal. He was a strong puncher who moved well and had the potential to be a lasting force in the heavyweight division before the emergence of Tyson.

Berbick's career soured following the loss to Tyson and he began to run into legal trouble.

In 1991, Berbick was convicted of misdemeanor assault for attacking his former business manager, who testified the boxer put a gun to her head and accused her of stealing money from him.

The following year, he was convicted of raping a family baby sitter and was sentenced to four years in prison. He also was convicted in 1992 of second-degree grand theft for forging his ex-wife's signature to get a mortgage on a home.

After serving 15 months in prison, Berbick was deported. He went to Canada, where he lived for a time following the 1976 Olympics. He eventually moved back to the U.S., but was deported a second time.

He had been living in Portland parish since 2002.

Though Berbick was believed to be 52, according to boxing records, other reports said he was as old as 56 or as young as 49.

"Legally, I'm a spirit," he once said. "I have no age."

[Rudy-D.F.F!!!!]

R.I.P

[Steinmiller]

Thats terrible, RIP.

[Fantouz]

A woman is arrested over Berbick murder
By Danny Griffiths

A woman involved in a long-running land dispute with former heavyweight boxing champion Trevor Berbick has been detained for questioning in connection with his death, police have revealed.

Authorities identified the woman as the mother of a 20-year-old suspect arrested on Sunday. Berbick's body was found on Saturday in a church courtyard with wounds to the back of his head. A 2-inch-thick metal pipe found at the scene is believed to be the murder weapon, police said.
The woman and her son are being questioned. Their names have not been released. Earlier this year, Berbick was charged with assault for allegedly punching the woman, police said.

She was detained Sunday night and lives in the parish of Portland, about 80 miles east of Kingston, where Berbick also lived.
Berbick was the last boxer to face Muhammad Ali in the ring and briefly held the WBC heavyweight title before losing it to Mike Tyson in 1986.
Assistant Police Commissioner Les Green said Sunday that detectives were investigating whether a family conflict sparked the attack. Berbick, who was believed to be 52, was pronounced dead by a local doctor in the church courtyard next to the three-bedroom house where he was raised.
Detective Sgt. Kenneth Bailey of the Port Antonio police station in Portland told The Jamaica Gleaner that Berbick was last seen alive early Saturday at a nearby bar.

"The body had four wounds to the back of the head, as he was probably attacked from behind," Bailey told the newspaper. "The impression and damage done to the skull have indicated that a machete may have been used by his attacker or attackers to murder him."

After beating Ali in 1981 in an unanimous decision in the Bahamas, Berbick went on to win the WBC heavyweight title fours years later in a decision over Pinklon Thomas.
His reign was short, however, as a 20-year-old Tyson knocked out Berbick in the second round Nov. 22, 1986, to become the youngest heavyweight champ.
He fought from 1976 to 2000, finishing with a record of 50-11 with one draw and 33 knockouts. He also fought for his Caribbean homeland at the 1976 Montreal Olympics.

Following his retirement from the ring, Berbick was convicted in the U.S. for sexual assault, grand theft and burglary.
"We have our challenges in life, but Trevor seemed to handle his challenges very badly," said C. Lloyd Allen, former president of the Jamaica Boxing Board and a close friend. "Once he lost to Tyson, he just went down a slippery slope."

In 1991, Berbick was convicted for attacking his former business manager, who testified the boxer put a gun to her head and accused her of stealing money from him.
The following year, he was convicted of raping a family baby sitter in Florida and was sentenced to four years in prison. He also was convicted in 1992 for forging his ex-wife's signature to get a mortgage on a home.
After 15 months in prison, Berbick was deported from the U.S. He went to Canada, where he lived for a time following the 1976 Olympics. He eventually moved back to the U.S. but was deported a second time.
Funeral arrangements have not been announced by Berbick's family.

source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/sport/othersports.html?in_article_id=413665&in_page_id=1781

[Fantouz]

Further update http://uk.sports.yahoo.com/03112006/2/photo/jamaica-charges-boxer-s-murder.html
Jamaica charges two in boxer's murder

<small id="yspartclsrc">Fri 03 Nov, 9:43 PM</small>
KINGSTON, Jamaica (Reuters) - Jamaican police on Friday charged two men with murdering former world heavyweight boxing champion Trevor Berbick, including one of his nephews.
Berbick, the last boxer to fight the legendary Muhammad Ali, was found dead in a churchyard near his home in Norwich, a popular tourist section of the eastern parish of Portland, on October 28.
The 51-year-old died of multiple wounds to his head, apparently inflicted with a machete, police said. Police said they had found the murder weapon.
The two suspects, Harold Berbick, 20, and Kenton Gordon, 18, were due to appear in Buff Bay magistrates court later on Friday. If convicted of murder, they face the death penalty or life imprisonment.
Police spokesman Jubert Llewellyn said Harold Berbick was the son of one of Trevor Berbick's younger brothers.
Police said that they were probing a link between Berbick's murder and an ongoing family feud over land.
The high-profile killing cast renewed attention on Jamaica's high murder and crime rates, which have long threatened to undermine its important tourism industry.
A concerted campaign to break up powerful criminal gangs was credited with a 13 percent drop in murders on the Caribbean island in the first half of the year. Drug- and gang-fuelled violence drove Jamaica's murder total to a record high of 1,669 in 2005.
Berbick represented Jamaica at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal and chose to make Canada his home after the event.
He defeated American Pinklon Thomas for the World Boxing Council heavyweight title in March 1986. He lost the title belt to Mike Tyson eight months later.
Berbick beat Ali in the boxing great's last professional fight in 1981.
He returned to Jamaica in 2003 after being deported from the United States, where he had several run-ins with the law and served a prison sentence.

[Squirrel]

This is crazy. R.I.P Trevor.

[amth]

rip sad sad ending