Teen rape victim living in fear – grandmother

…as accused continues to threaten teen despite Police report

A Corentyne, Region Six (East Berbice-Corentyne) mechanic, who is before the court for allegedly raping a teenage girl, has been threatening her.
According to family members of the teenager, she is scared for her life.
In July, the 30-year-old mechanic was charged for raping a 13-year-old girl between 2020 and April of this year. He was placed on $150,000 bail.
The girl is now 15 and her grandmother said that her younger sister is also scared, adding that she could also be harmed if her sister is attacked while on their way to or from school.
The elderly woman told this publication that the accused continues to threaten the teenager.
She explained that on several occasions when her granddaughter is going to school, she is being threatened by the accused who once said to her that she will get what she wants.
“So, the lil gyal tell me that when he did raping she, he tell she say if people know anything about it that he gon kill she,” the worried lady said while noting that the teenager is fearful that she may not return home from school one day.
The teenager, according to the grandmother, is reluctant to go to school. However, the woman noted that she gets assistance from her husband in accompanying the teen to and from school.
The woman has been taking care of her three granddaughters since their mother died.
She said that she has reported the threats to the Welfare Department in the region and was advised to make a report to the Police, which she did on September 15.
However, according to the grandmother, even after the report, the accused approached the teen as she left school one day and was waiting on transportation to get home and hurled threats.
The frustrated woman said that she is also fearful and feels helpless since there is no guaranteed protection for the granddaughter as the threats continue from the accused.
According to her, nothing tangible has been done by Police in relation to her reports of threats.
Even more worrying, she added, is the fact that after the initial report of the alleged rape was made, the Police officers did not take any action. It was not until she made a report to a senior officer in the region that the matter was pursued.
“When me go to the station, the Police keep telling me to take a settlement for the story because I would lose out because the paper would take one year at the DPP [Department of Public Prosecutions] and then when it go to court it would take a next two to three years for the case to try and the girl would get big so, I gon can’t talk for her and the case would dismiss,” she revealed.
Under the Sexual Offence Act, Police officers should follow a specific procedure when reports are made of alleged sexual offences. (G4)