A 24-year-old man was on Tuesday found guilty by a 12-member jury on two counts of raping a six-year-old girl, whom he attempted to silence with death threats.
Colvin Norton was jailed for a total of 28 years by Justice Jo-Ann Barlow at the Sexual Offences Court for illegals acts which occurred August 1, 2013, and just five days after on August 6, 2013 in the county of Demerara.
During the trial the court heard that Norton was caught in the act by the child’s mother on the second occasion.
It was revealed that after he sexually penetrated the young child, he told her not to tell anyone as her mother would not believe her. The jury also considered that Norton later threatened the girl that if she told, he would kill both her and her mother.
The child’s impact statement outlined that she still has flashbacks to the time the incident occurred. She was so affected by Norton’s actions that even her grades started to slip at school.
“At first I felt sad and ashamed. After the incident, I felt that I was the cause of what happened…I deserve me innocence, I thought I was the only child in the world who had something like this happen but I later learned that this was not so. I am not so ashamed now as I know that Colvin Norton is being punished,” the girl who is a few years shy of being a teenager expressed.
Justice Barlow considered that the offender breached the trust of the child’s mother who had entrusted him to care for not only the six-year old but others as well.
“Like a thief in the night, you violated a six-year-old,” the Judge remarked.
She also pointed out that Norton trying to silence the victim showed his total disregard for proper moral values. The Judge further ordered that Norton undergo treatment under the sexual offender’s rehabilitation programme.
She added that he should also take on programmes to improve his literacy. She also expressed hope for the child to continue receiving counselling. (Shemuel Fanfair)
