By PAVEL BAILEY

Tribune Staff Reporter

pbailey@tribunemedia.net

A 62-year-old man stood impassively  as a jury delivered guilty verdicts on 22 counts of incest and one count of indecent assault against his granddaughter, abuses alleged to have spanned from May 2019 to January 2024.

The now 17-year-old complainant testified to years of repeated sexual abuse, describing it as a “nightmare”. She detailed how her grandfather allegedly forced her into non-consensual anal and oral sex on multiple occasions, acts that she said started when she was just 11 years old.

She said she had lived with him and her younger siblings for most of her life, but finally moved out in February after disclosing the abuse.

Senior Justice Cheryl Grant-Thompson presided over the case, which included testimony from 11 witnesses.

A nine-person jury found the defendant guilty on all charges, with a 7-2 vote on each count.

The young woman, who was between 11 and 16 when the offences occurred, testified by video link, recounting how the defendant allegedly manipulated and controlled her, escalating to violent threats and physical punishment with such objects as rakes and hammers.

She recalled an incident in 2019 when her grandfather reached under the covers and touched her inappropriately, leading to more severe assaults that left her injured and traumatised.

She revealed her sense of betrayal and frustration at herself for not coming forward sooner, detailing how she confided first in her girlfriend and later in her mother.

The complainant said she cried the first time her grandfather molested her anally and that he sometimes used vaseline. She said she once suffered a tear near her anus from the abuse.

She admitted she once had a close relationship with her grandfather, but began to resent him as the abuse continued. She described him as strict and frightening, claiming he often prevented her from going out and was violent, hitting her with such objects as rakes and hammers.

She testified that her grandfather touched her hip more than ten times over the years and forced her to perform oral sex frequently. She further alleged the anal assaults began in mid-2019 and continued until late 2023, happening every other week until 2022, when she briefly ran away.

She expressed frustration at herself for not speaking out sooner and said she tried to avoid engaging with the defendant.

Recalling a text conversation with her girlfriend, whom she referred to as “wifey”, she admitted she initially lied, saying her grandfather had stopped molesting her two years earlier. However, at the start of the year, she confessed the abuse had continued.

Additionally, she claimed to have engaged in self-harm in the past, but said her girlfriend was the reason she stopped.

The complainant told the court that her grandfather’s actions were the reason she no longer liked boys.

She revealed she had been too scared to tell her grandmother about the abuse, but eventually confided in her girlfriend. With her girlfriend’s encouragement, she disclosed the abuse to her mother in February.

In a text to her mother on February 6, the complainant said her grandfather had been “bothering” her since she was 12 and had never stopped.

After the revelation, her mother instructed her to pack her bags. Her grandmother picked her up to take her away from the house.

After the verdict, the defendant’s attorney, Sonia Timothy Knowles, argued for leniency, citing his previously clean record and the lack of violence in the assaults.

She suggested a nine-year sentence for incest and seven years for indecent assault, acknowledging an increase in sexual crime cases.

During her address, the defendant became visibly distressed, leading Justice Grant-Thompson to intervene, noting that his lawyer seemed more remorseful than he did.

When asked for his response, the accused denied wrongdoing, asserting he “could never touch his children” and claimed there was no evidence against him.

Justice Grant-Thompson, however, said he had “deflowered” the complainant’s innocence and trust.

Prosecutor Rashied Edgecombe argued for a 35-year prison term.

Sentencing will proceed on November 6, with the accused remanded to the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services until then.