A former Lance Corporal attached to the City Constabulary accused of raping a 16-year-old boy five years ago, on Tuesday walked a free man after the complaint informed the court that he wished not to proceed with the matter.
Clifton Pellew was initially charged in February 2018 before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan. Police had stated that on August 15, 2017, at the Constabulary Outpost at City Hall, he engaged in sexual activity with a 16-year-old boy.
It was reported that the teenager was arrested after he was found loitering and taken to the outpost on Regent Street when the incident occurred.
Another officer attached to the City Constabulary, Quacy Baveghems, had reportedly witnessed the crime and reported it to his supervisor; the information was subsequently conveyed to then-Mayor Patricia Chase-Green and then, Town Clerk Royston King.
However, an investigation revealed that Baveghems did not make a written entry of the incident in the station diary. As such, the rape accused and Baveghems were fired by the Town Clerk.
Mayor Chase-Green had said that the decision to dismiss the officers came following the discovery of new evidence.
Following protests by activists in Guyana and calls for Pellew to face the courts for his crime, the matter was handed over to the Police, who sought legal advice from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), who subsequently advised that Pellew be charged with the rape of a child under the age of 16 years.
However, on Tuesday before Justice Navindra Singh, State Prosecutor Nafeeza Baig called the complainant to the witness box and it was then he indicated that he has since moved on with his life and did not wish to give any evidence in the matter.
As such, the Judge directed the jury to return a formal verdict of not guilty, thus making Pellew a free man.
