A 59-year-old gardener of Penal, serving a 14-year prison sentence for committing sexual acts on a 10-year-old girl on four occasions over a decade ago, has lost his appeal against his conviction.
Delivering a 28-page judgment during a virtual hearing, yesterday, Appellate Judges Alice Yorke-Soo Hon, Maria Wilson, and Malcolm Holdip dismissed all three grounds of appeal raised by attorneys for Kishore Lutchman, of Penal Rock Road, Penal.
In its decision, the appeal panel rejected claims that the judge, who presided over Lutchman’s trial, made errors in explaining to the jury, which eventually convicted him, how the victim’s evidence should be considered.
In dismissing the appeal, the panel affirmed Lutchman’s conviction and sentence.
According to the evidence in the case, Lutchman was charged with two counts of serious indecency and two counts of grievous sexual assault, arising out of a series of sporadic attacks on the child between 2007 and 2009.
The prosecution’s case was that in September 2007 the accused committed the first act of serious indecency on the child at a house. However, he was interrupted by a neighbour and her mother who arrived around the same time.
The child was threatened by the accused not to say anything.
On another occasion, later that month, Lutchman allegedly made the child put on a pornographic DVD for them to watch.
The child left and when she returned the accused had his pants allegedly pulled down to his knees and he was playing with himself. The third offence took place in a car in December 2007.
The child reported the attacks to her mother and then the police after the final incident in January 2008 when the accused allegedly went into her bedroom and sexually attacked her.
Lutchman was sentenced to 14 years in prison for each grievous sexual assault charge and five years for each serious indecency charge.
Lutchman will be released after serving 14 years as the sentences were ordered to run concurrently.
Lutchman was represented by Daniel Khan, Ula Nathai-Lutchman (no relation), Harrynarine Singh and Davina Inalsingh. Sabrina Dougdeen-Jaglal represented the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in Lutchman’s trial and in the appeal.
