The High Court in Suva sentenced a man to 16 years and 10 months in prison after he was convicted of raping his stepdaughter. The case was presided over by Justice Thushara Rajasinghe, who found the former primary school teacher guilty on three counts of rape, as well as one count each of indecent and sexual assault.
Evidence presented in court revealed that between 2017 and 2018, the man repeatedly indecently and sexually assaulted the complainant in their home. At the time of the incidents, she was just 17 years old.
Initially, the defendant had pleaded guilty to five counts; however, following the trial, which included testimony from three witnesses, including the victim, he was ultimately found guilty.
The judgment was delivered on September 27, but the sentencing occurred the following Friday. Justice Rajasinghe noted that the victim’s report indicated that the crime had severely impacted her emotional and psychological well-being. He emphasized that the sexual exploitation of children in domestic situations poses a significant social threat.
The court determined that the stepfather committed the offenses while the complainant was alone and vulnerable. Despite providing for her needs as a parental figure, he manipulated her vulnerability for his own sexual gratification.
Even after being forgiven by both his stepdaughter and her mother, he attempted to carry out further assaults whenever an opportunity arose. The court took into account only the mitigating factor of his previously good character, given his 30 years of service as a primary school teacher.
He will serve a non-parole period of 14 years and 10 months as part of his sentence. Additionally, a permanent domestic violence restraining order has been imposed against him, including standard no-contact and no-molestation conditions. Violating this order could lead to prosecution under Section 77 of the Domestic Violence Act.