Life sentence without parole for deportee who raped teen

A shopkeeper who had been deported to Guyana after serving time in a United States’ jail for a sex crime has been sentenced by a High Court Judge in Guyana to life imprisonment for a similar offence.
The convict, Wesley Bazil, called “Tappy”, had the custodial punishment imposed on him on Thursday for the offences of rape and sexual activity committed on a girl aged 15. Trial Judge Navindra Singh has said this sex offender is not eligible for parole.
In December 2020, Bazil touched the girl inappropriately after she went to his shop to make a purchase. The following month, he dragged her to the back of his yard and raped her. Her parents found out that she had been sexually abused only after her mother had taken away her cell phone and seen that she had been discussing the incident with a friend via text messages. A report was filed with the Police, and Bazil was arrested and prosecuted.
During Thursday’s sentencing hearing, Bazil’s lawyer Euclin Gomes, while acknowledging the serious nature of the offences, asked the court to impose an appropriate sentence.

For her part, State Prosecutor Tiffini Lyken requested the Judge to consider the alarming prevalence of sexual offences against children in Guyana. She said it is a situation that has caught the attention of the country’s highest court, the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ). In the circumstances, Prosecutor Lyken submitted, there needs to be a robust approach to sentencing with respect to these types of offences.
According to her, Bazil had been convicted by a court in New Jersey, USA for a similar offence, and had been sentenced to imprisonment. Upon his release in 2017, he was deported to Guyana.

Fell back on his own ways
“It is clear that when he (Bazil) came to Guyana, he fell back into the error of his own ways. For this reason, he continues to be a danger to society,” the State Counsel noted, as she asked the Judge to consider the impact the incident has had, and continues to have, on the young girl’s life.
During brief remarks, Bazil apologised to the victim-survivour’s family and to his family. “I want to apologise to the young lady’s family for putting them through this sorrow and pain. I also want to apologise to my family,” he said from the prisoner’s dock.

“My future was ruined”
When the victim’s impact statement was read to the court by the prosecutor, the teen shared that as a result of the incident, she went through a period of depression.
“The situation got to a point where I thought that everyone was better off without me. It made me drop out of school, and made me start practising self-harm and running away from home. All I had planned for my future was ruined,” she wrote.

Calculated predator
In his sentencing remarks, Justice Singh called Bazil a calculated predator, and said he had dragged his victim through a trial knowing fully well what he had done to her.
Given the convict’s perverted ways, the Judge asked, “Why would I release him?”
In the circumstances, Bazil was sentenced to imprisonment for life without parole.
After hours of deliberation last month, a 12-member jury had unanimously found Bazil guilty on each of the two charges he faced. Following the jury’s verdicts, Bazil had attempted suicide by harming himself with a razor blade. He had reportedly inflicted several cuts to his throat.
Swift intervention by the court marshals had, however, prevented him from further injuring himself, but he nonetheless had lost consciousness and collapsed.
He had immediately been rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPHC).
On Thursday, he also apologised to Justice Singh for disrupting the court proceedings.
For information and support, please contact the Suicide Prevention Hotline at 600-7896, 623-4444, 223-0001, or 223-0009. (G1)