Court

Teenager cops 12 years for raping 6-year-old male cousin

March 28, 2019 12:47 pm

A 19-year-old man has been jailed for 12 years for raping his six-year-old male cousin in a remote village in Cakaudrove last year.

The man was found guilty by the assessors and this was concurred by the Judge Justice Paul Madigan.

The incident happened last July after the young boy’s mother left the two alone at home.

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The Court heard when the mother returned home, she found the man and her young son on the bed with his pants off.

The young boy was crying and told his mother about the incident who then reported the matter to police.

The accused, who was 18 at the time of the offence argued that the six-year-old instigated the sexual encounter and maneuvered himself to enable the rape.

This claim was dismissed by the High Court as absurd and impossible.

In sentencing the man, Justice Madigan says the aggravating features of this case include his shocking abuse of trust and that he attempted to defend himself by blaming the child.

Justice Madigan says it is beyond imagination that a six-year-old boy will have lustful desires that will encourage him to stimulate a well-built 18-year-old into such sexual activity.

The man will be eligible for parole after serving 10 years.