A man has been sentenced to five years in prison after a jury convicted him of sexually assaulting his 13-year-old cousin during what began as a routine school drop-off. According to Antigua.news, the sentencing brings to a close a case rooted in events that took place on the morning of October 26, 2022.
Evidence presented at trial revealed that the defendant, who was in his early twenties at the time, offered to drive the teenager to school — a task he had reportedly carried out on previous occasions. The journey, however, did not follow its expected course.
Rather than proceeding directly to the school, the man drove around with another male relative in the vehicle before stopping at a market to drop the relative off. He then diverted to a secluded dirt road near the stadium, where the assault occurred.
The trial commenced in January. After hearing testimony and reviewing the evidence, jurors deliberated for approximately 90 minutes before returning unanimous guilty verdicts on charges of serious indecency and indecent assault.
At sentencing on April 1, the court imposed a five-year prison term for serious indecency and a concurrent one-year sentence for indecent assault.
In his defence, the accused gave an unsworn statement in which he acknowledged driving his cousin that morning but denied any wrongdoing. He claimed he dropped her at school and spent the rest of the time running errands.
The jury rejected his account.
