Teen’s life destroyed’ …after sexually molested by father of six

…court hands down 5-year jail term after jury guilty verdict

A 27-year-old man was, on Wednesday, sentenced to five years imprisonment for sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl, three years ago, when he sneaked into her East Coast, Demerara home.

Jermaine Augustus, a father of six, was found guilty by a mixed 12-member jury for sexually assaulting the 14-year-old girl on February 15, 2016. Augustus was initially charged for rape of a child under the age of 16 but was found guilty on the latter charge of sexual assault. He reportedly kissed the child and fondled her.

He was represented by Attorney-at-law, Maxwell McKay, while the state was represented by prosecutors Tariq Mohammed and Tuanna Hardy. Attorney McKay, in mitigation, begged the court for leniency for his client, who he said is the sole breadwinner for his family.
With tears in his eyes, Augustus said “I agree with the decision that the jury had…All I have to say is that I’m sorry.”

Probation officer, Nicola Foo, read the victim’s impact statement in court. “Being touched for the first time made me feel so dirty. It made me feel like I was tossed in the mud. That night, after losing my virginity, my whole life took a turn. I did stuff [and] my whole life took a turn… I started smoking marijuana, popping pills and drinking alcohol every day,” the victim stated in her statement.

Her behaviour got worst when she started skulking from school, following the wrong company and allowing different men to use her. Eventually, the victim said, she dropped out of school without her mother knowing and would stay at home, locking herself in her room.

At this point, she began cutting herself every day. She recalled becoming involved with a 21-year-old man, and became pregnant for him three times but got an abortion each time. This did not sit well with her lover who became physically abusive.

Eventually, he left her and she started to ‘hook-up’ with different males at parties and one time she was drugged and gang-raped by three men. Again, she got pregnant and aborted it, but the doctor warned her that she would not be able to conceive a child if she keeps aborting them.

Nevertheless, the teen explained that her mother eventually placed her back into the school system but he continued using drugs and drinking alcohol.
Due to her behaviour, the victim explained that she was eventually placed into an orphanage and cut off her hair.

Now, the victim explained that she suffers from sickle cell, infertility and has a sexually transmitted disease (STD).

The judge made her ruling after considering the victim’s impact statement and the fact that from the inception, Augustus accepted responsibility for his actions. Augustus had told the court that he withdrew himself from the relationship with the victim after he became uncomfortable with her age.

He explained that he always suspected that the victim was below the age of consent. At the end of the case, Augustus was sentenced to five years imprisonment with the possibility of parole after serving three years behind bars.