Sexual abuse case to be heard next month

July 19, 2012 10:54 AM

PHILIPSBURG - The Court of First Instance will be dealing with a case of sexual abuse allegedly involving a 50-year-old man and a girl who was born in 2000, during its sitting of August 16.

The case against E.C.G. was postponed on Wednesday because the file had not been ready until Monday, July 16, and because the defendant's attorney Geert Hatzmann is currently on vacation.
 
Prosecutor Dounia Benammar called the case and said the suspect had allegedly lured his victim into his house where he had committed various lewd acts upon the girl, between January 1, and April 4, 2012.
 
The suspect will also be charged with possession of a hunting rifle and a handgun, which he allegedly had shown the girl. The Prosecutor said he had also made the girl fire a shot. He had allegedly threatened to kill the girl's mother and sisters if she ever informed them about what had transpired.
 
Attorney Luciano Dundas requested the Court to lift E.C.G's detention pending the August 16 hearing. The lawyer questioned the credibility of witnesses, who had stated that E.C.G. had also been sexually involved with other girls. Dundas found these statements were irrelevant, and said his client would be pleading not guilty.
 
With regard to the firearm possession, Dundas said his client had no criminal record and had not taken the weapons to the streets, but had kept them in his house. This led Prosecutor Benammar to respond that weapons can also be used for crimes indoors, which had actually happened in the case at hand.
 
Judge Maria Paulides had flown in from Curaçao to preside over Wednesday's criminal sitting. She temporarily filled the gap left by Judge Monique Keppels, who completed her three-year stint in St. Maarten and will be returning to The Netherlands. A new residing judge for St. Maarten is expected to be sworn in by the Joint Court in August.
 
Judge Paulides turned down the request to suspend E.C.G.'s detention and postponed the hearing.

(The Daily Herald)

Geert Hatzmann is an attorney at law at Bermon Law Office and Legislative Services on Sint Maarten.