Tucville serial rapist found guilty of raping, battering Venezuelan woman

Mar 26, 2022 News

Kaieteur News – A mixed 12-member jury on Friday found accused Tucville serial rapist, Thurston Semple, guilty of battering and raping a Venezuelan sex worker.
Semple, 38, a taxi-driver of Lot 5A, Tucville Terrace, Georgetown was committed to stand trial in the High Court for that offence last April. The jury was empanelled earlier this month for the trial of the matter in the Demerara High Court before Justice Priya Sewnarine-Beharry.

Found guilty, Thurston Semple.

Semple denied the charge which stated that between February 24, and February 25, 2021, at Tucville, Georgetown, he engaged in sexual penetration with the 30-year-old Venezuelan woman without her consent. The latter charge stated that on the same day and at the same location, he caused the said woman actual bodily harm.
However, on Friday after two hours of deliberating, the jury returned with two guilty verdicts. Justice Sewnarine-Beharry deferred Semple’s sentencing to April 29, 2022 and ordered that a mental health examination be conducted and a probation report be provided for Semple.
The case was prosecuted by State Counsel, Nafeeza Muntaz Ali and Latifah Elliot while Semple was represented by attorney-at-law Everton Singh-Lammy.
According to the victim, on the February 24, 2021, she was on the corner of Jenny’s Family store in front of the Nova International Hotel, Georgetown when around 22:30 hours Semple drove up in his vehicle and spoke with her.
He eventually made an agreement with the woman for $10,000 and as such she left with him and they went to his residence.
Upon arrival, she went into his house, sat on his bed and smoked a cigarette. The two then engaged in sexual intercourse. However, during the sexual intercourse, the condom broke, and she replaced it but informed Semple that he only had 15 minutes remaining and if he does not finish within that time she will leave.
In response, Semple told the victim ‘ok’ and walked into the kitchen and returned with a knife while the woman was getting dressed.
He then told her, inter alia, that she is “not going anywhere.” As such, the woman then told Semple to keep the money and she will leave in peace. However, he grabbed her hair, placed the knife to her neck, removed the condom and inserted his penis into her mouth.
The victim recounted that Semple then ordered her to perform oral sex on him and she complied. Sometime after she stopped, and Semple slapped her.
The woman then asked Semple for some water and as he turned his back to get the said water, she scrambled her clothes and jumped through a glass window.
However, Semple ran behind her and grabbed her by her hair. The woman recounted that she was naked when he held onto her and stabbed her. She then managed to hold onto the knife but Semple then armed himself with a plastic tube filled with cement and continued to beat her.
A passerby then stopped and asked Semple what happened and he said “Nothing.” However the woman cried out for help, telling the person that she was a prostitute. Two of his neighbours also called out to him to stop and he told the victim no one is going to help her because they are afraid of him and that she is going to be his 24th victim.
The woman then gathered strength and jumped the fence. Semple’s neighbours promptly went to her rescue.
The police was subsequently alerted and arrived sometime after. The victim was taken to the Georgetown Public Hospital where she was examined.
When Semple was cautioned by the arresting officer he said, “Officer I did had sex with her I pay her for the service, and she refuse to do what I asked and I assaulted her in her face with a PVC pipe.”
Semple is no stranger to the court and also has similar matters pending before the court.