Labourer jailed for 18 years for raping 5-year-old boy

Twenty-eight-year-old Davindra Petamber has been sentenced to 18 years in jail after being found guilty of raping a five-year-old boy, whose mother’s home he used to visit regularly.
This labourer, formerly of Django Town, Mon Repos, East Coast Demerara, had been on trial before Justice Sandil Kissoon in the Sexual Offences Court in Demerara for the offence of rape of a child under the age of 16 years old. After deliberations, a 12-member jury, on December 22, 2022, found Petamber guilty of engaging in sexual penetration of the child by placing his penis inside the child’s mouth on July 27, 2020. The jury’s verdict was unanimous.
According to the prosecution’s facts, Petamber is known to the victim, as they were neighbours and Petamber had been a friend of the child’s mother, whose home he would visit regularly. On the day in question, the child went to the labourer’s home with his mother and siblings. Shortly after, Petamber lured the boy to a semi-secluded area of the property and raped him.
The child’s mother had caught Petamber in the act, and had reported the incident to the Police. But even though Petamber was found guilty by a jury of his peers, during an interview with a Probation Officer, he maintained that he would not engage in sexual activity with a minor.
He claimed that the boy’s mother had levelled the accusation against him for financial gain.
Meanwhile, in his impact statement, the victim, who is now seven, expressed that he is still traumatised by the sexual abuse. He related to the Probation Officer that he would sometimes reflect on what the convict did to him, and would become fearful. The boy said that as a result of the incident, he is unable to focus at school, hence he is not excelling academically.
The victim’s mother told the trial Judge that she would like the perpetrator to experience the full brunt of the law, since the incident has disrupted her child’s growth.
Justice Kissoon, in calculating an appropriate sentence, considered the aggravating and mitigating factors, the factual circumstances, the serious nature and prevalence of sexual offences against children in Guyana, and the need to impose a sentence that is a deterrent.
The 18-year custodial sentence was imposed by the Judge on Monday afternoon. (G1)