Man jailed for carnal knowledge of eight year old girl

Last Updated on Friday, 25 July 2014, 4:22 by GxMedia

A man, who had carnal knowledge of a girl when she was eight years old, was Thursday sentenced to 25 years jail at the Berbice High Court.

Justice Narendra Singh handed down the sentence to Talbert Mc Pherson of Hopetown Village, West Coast Berbice after a mixed jury returned a guilty verdict.

Mc Pherson was accused of committing the act on a girl under the age of 15 between August 12 and 13, 2009 at Number 30 Village, West Coast Berbice.  A medical examination showed that her vaginal wall and anus had been bruised.

The court heard that Mc Pherson knelt on the mattress and placed the pillow on the back of the girl’s head and the removed her underwear and then interfered with her anus and vagina.

The girl said after the ordeal the man fled and she could not have slept again for the remainder of the night because she was afraid. The man came into contact with the girl because she was taken to his home by her grandmother to stay because she was going to a wake.

Eight witnesses- including the victim, her grandmother, the examining doctor  and three police investigators- testified for the prosecution.

While the jury was deliberating, Mc Pherson was seen reading his Bible and singing hymns.