A St Ann man has been acquitted of a charge that he molested a young child five years ago.
A judge found the 21-year-old man not guilty of indecent assault at the end of his trial in the St Ann’s Bay Parish Court yesterday, the Court Administration Division (CAD) and his attorney have confirmed.
Trials involving sexual offences are closed to the public. The Gleaner will not publish the man’s name to protect the identity of the seven-year-old child.
The alleged incident occurred in 2020 at an early childhood institution in St Ann which the child attended, prosecutors alleged. She was three years old at the time of the incident.
“The accused was discharged. No evidence was offered. The matter was tried and the defendant was found not guilty,” said a spokesperson for CAD in response to questions submitted by The Gleaner.
Donnovan Collins, the attorney for the 21 year-old man, said his client is “extremely happy” with the verdict because “his life has been on hold since he was accused of this crime”.
“He can now begin the journey of getting his young life together so that he can achieve his goals,” said Collins, noting that his client has vehemently denied the accusations from day one.
The attorney was also critical of how the initial complaint was handled by police investigators.
According to him, there were several other clear leads that could have been followed by the police.
“It appeared that once the statement was recorded from the complainant the police proceeded to arrest my client,” he said.
– Livern Barrett
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