A 34-year-old man was on Monday found not guilty on a charge which alleged that he raped a 13-year-old girl. Following a trial before Justice Brassington Reynolds at the Demerara High Court, a jury returned an 11-1 not guilty verdict. It was alleged that on November 27, 2016, in Demerara, Eric Scotland engaged in sexual penetration with the minor.
Upon his indictment, Eric Scotland, a farmer, who was represented by Attorney-at-Law Bernard Da Silva, had pleaded not guilty to the charge. State Counsel Sarah Martin and State Counsel Nafeeza Baig appeared for the prosecution. The prosecutors had contended that Scotland walked up behind the young girl and covered her mouth with his hands.
It was alleged that he placed the girl to lie on the floor before removing her nightgown and underwear. He was then accused of raping her. During her testimony, the virtual complainant had claimed that the ordeal lasted between 10 to 15 minutes.
Scotland, in his defence, testified that the teenager was rebellious and constantly needed discipline. In lending a word of advice, Justice Reynolds told Scotland that this is the closest he would want to get to securing a conviction for the offence of rape.
“You know what happened. The complainant knows what happened. Grab this opportunity with both hands. Your wife was there for you, your family was there for you. Go and be the man you ought to be. Give thanks to God… Live the rest of your life so that it can bring honour and glory to His name,” said the Judge to the former rape accused.
