A man found guilty of raping a 13-year-old girl in 2021 has been sentenced to life imprisonment.
Mark Samuels, 32, a father of two and a resident of Sophia, Greater Georgetown, has been sentenced to life by Justice Navindra Singh at the Sexual Offences Court in Demerara on Thursday. He becomes eligible for parole after serving 30 years.
The charge against him detailed that on January 27, 2021, in the county of Demerara, he engaged in sexual activity with a child under the age of 16. That activity involved vaginal penetration.
Child rapist Mark Samuels
He had been on trial for the offence before Justice Singh and a mixed 12-member jury, and was convicted last month after the jury returned a 10-2 guilty verdict.
During a plea in mitigation, Samuels’s lawyer, Clevaun Humphrey, described his client as a “selfless individual”, but noted that he was raised without a father figure. The lawyer asked the court to temper justice with mercy, stating that Samuels is the father of two underage girls whose lives he would like to be a part of.
“I am sincerely sorry for what took place. And I’m asking that you be lenient to me, so I can be part of my two girl-child life. I never had a father growing up. My two children does cry for me every night. I am a very jovial person, and I don’t get myself involved in certain activities,” Samuels told Justice Singh, who had asked him if he desired to address the court.
He had, however, told a probation officer that he did not rape the child.
“Barefaced and bold”
Considering what he had told the probation officer, the Judge asked Samuels: “How can you apologise for something you say you are not responsible for?”
In considering the appropriate sentence for the felon, Justice Singh, among other things, found that there were no mitigating factors. According to him, the convict has not only denied committing the offence, but has dishonestly shown remorse with “self-serving” statements. Those self-serving statements, he noted, demonstrate that Samuels is ready and willing to say anything to secure his freedom.
“Barefaced and bold” were the words used by Justice Singh to describe the convict’s attack, which he said has ruined the girl’s life forever.
For her part, Senior State Counsel Tiffini Lyken said that Samuels apologised for “tactical reasons”, intending to get a light sentence.
“My life is forever changed”
Through a victim impact statement, the court heard from the girl how the sexual assault has affected her. She said, “After that unfaithful morning, it was a very sad time in my life. At the moment of this gruesome act, I was in a daze. My life is forever changed.”
Directing her remarks at Samuels, she declared, “Mark Samuels, you raped me and you took my innocence away. You have ruined my life. You took away my confidence, my independence, my own voice, my natural gentleness. You are dirt to me…”
The prosecution said Samuels had touched the girl inappropriately, and had raped her even though she had tried to fight him off. After the ordeal, the girl confided in her mother, who in turn filed a report with the Police. Samuels was subsequently arrested and charged with the crime.
Back in 2021, Samuels was charged with stealing 66 COVID-19 vaccination cards from the Health Ministry at Brickdam, Georgetown, between August 22 and August 23, 2021. However, the charge against him was dismissed the following year for want of prosecution.
The prosecution had contended that, during the period mentioned, a female nurse discovered that the lock on the cupboard in which the vaccination cards were stored was broken. Upon checking, the healthcare worker noticed that the items were missing, and alerted her supervisor, who lodged a report at the Brickdam Police Station.
Samuels, a former Policeman, had previously been convicted of forgery while he was in the employ of the Ministry of Education. (G1)
