School girl asks police to take ‘no further action’ against Dharamlall

Jul 01, 2023 News

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Kaieteur News – The 16-year-old Indigenous girl, who accused Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Nigel Dharamlall of raping her, has since informed police investigators that she no longer wish to continue with the matter.

On Thursday, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Shalimar Ali-Hack, SC, returned the police file on the rape allegations against the minister, instructing that ranks do further investigations into the matter.

However, Kaieteur News understands that the child, who has been in protective custody for just over a week, told investigators that she no longer wants to proceed with the case.

Notably, when contacted by this media entity, Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum said, “At this time, I am only able to confirm that the alleged victim has given a ‘no further action statement’ to investigators in the presence of one of her parents and a representative from the Child Care Agency. The [file] is currently being prepared to be sent to the DPP for further legal advice.”

However, in an interview with News Source, attorney Dexter Todd said the statement by the Crime Chief is unacceptable. He said, “it is not impossible for her maybe because of the amount of pressure and they have never at least respected her request which is to have her lawyers present or to be part or to be able to speak with her own lawyers. A statement stating that she no longer wishes to proceed with the matter is not a recantation of her statement. Therefore, the Director of Public Prosecutions cannot act on that request because she has not gone through the process of identifying that the allegations made against the minister were in fact not true. If she does that, then the police have to charge her for making a false report and to the best of my knowledge, she never did recant her statement.”

Further, Todd said the DPP must go through a different process in relation to dealing with the matter. “No child at 16-years-old should be under the pressure that she has been under.”

The attorney believes that the statement issued by the crime chief is “very premature”. He noted that the DPP should not act on the child’s statement without a “proper psychological interview being done and report being submitted as to her state of mind.”

“It is clear that the girl is not comfortable in the circumstances in which they have her…these long, long interviews, locking her away. She is tired of it. It is not surprising that this is the step she has taken…it is an issue of her state of mind.”

Todd disclosed in the News Source interview that a registered non-governmental organization with a mission to safeguard the physical and mental wellbeing of all children, had interviews with the teen Friday morning and the child never withdrew the statement.

“Actually what she was telling [the named entity] was that I am refusing to answer any more questions on the same issue. I am saying the same thing over again.”

He said the police involved a completely different group which was not involved prior to Friday afternoon. “At this point, this was the boiling point for her,” Todd said noting that “she is tired of it”.

“What has happened is that this girl has been treated as the accused and the accused has been treated as the victim…this is a total reverse of how this thing operates for any right-thinking person. The type of pressure that this girl has come under, the type of interrogation, treatment by the State…no wonder the girl breaks.”

The attorney said he was never allowed to meet the teen while she was being interviewed by the authorities. “All attempts failed. I know the state, through the Solicitor General was to facilitate access to the victim and all attempts failed. No calls were going through. No calls at all were being accepted. The amount of times I called the Solicitor General’s office today to be given follow up on the arrangements he promised, would be put in place for the girl. She kept saying the same thing, ‘I want to speak with the attorneys.’”

Late last night, the Guyana Police Force (GPF) issued a statement condemning and cautioning against the peddling of misinformation on social media about what occurred in the case.

It was first stated that no police investigator made contact with the teen on Thursday to conduct any interview after the file was returned by the DPP.

The GPF claimed that it was on Thursday when the girl informed her parents and an officer of the Child Care and Protection Agency (CPA) that she did not want to proceed with this matter any further.

Thereafter, it was stated that the teen girl and her parents then prepared a statement to reflect that she is withdrawing her complaint. Notably, the Police said that no investigator was a part of this process. The statement was then delivered to the DPP’s Chambers by a parent of the teen, another copy was then delivered to the Police.

It was explained that only after receipt of that statement did investigators meet with the teen, her parents and an officer from CPA.

“At that time, the Virtual Complainant (alleged victim), in the presence of her parent and the Childcare official, informed the investigators that she was withdrawing her complaint against Minister Nigel Dharamlall and that she was doing so without anyone forcing her to do so and of her own free will,” the Police disclosed.

It was stated too that a video recording was made of the teen expressing her wishes. Notably, the Police underscored that every process of the child withdrawing her allegation was done in the presence of her parents and the CPA officer.

Given this, the Police said the next step will be to send back the file to the DPP for legal advice.

Moreover, it was stated that, “For emphasis, it must be reiterated that at no time whatsoever, was the Virtual Complainant [alleged victim] interviewed and re-interviewed to exhaustion as is alleged.”

The GPF expressed concerns over the fact that confidential information surrounding the interview, that was conducted by an Non-Governmental Organization, was disclosed to several persons who published details of same on social media.

To this, the Police said, “This is a serious development which can undermine criminal investigations resulting in serious miscarriages of justice.”

This publication had reported that in a letter to President Irfaan Ali, the teen girl shared gruesome details about how she was allegedly groomed and later raped by the minister. In her letter, she pleaded with President Ali, Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand and relevant authorities to look into the matter.

According to the letter seen by this publication, the girl first met the minister at an event last year, when she was 15-years-old. She said she was raped three months after meeting the minister and at that time, she was 16-years-old. She disclosed in the letter that after continuously harassing her to meet up with him, she eventually agreed to meet the minister. The teen said this is when the minister allegedly raped and sodomised her before handing her a sum of money.

Following the official report made to the police by the teen girl in the company of an officer from the Child Care and Protection Agency (CPA), Minister Dharamlall was arrested and subsequently released on $1M bail.

Amid calls and protest by civil society for Dharamlall to be sacked, President Ali announced that the rape accused has proceeded on administrative leave to allow for a full probe into the allegations. Moreover, Vice President (VP) Bharrat Jagdeo during a recent interview said that if the rape allegations levelled against Minister Dharamlall are true, the minister would have to face the consequences. Jagdeo also stated that while he hopes the allegations are not true, neither the party nor the government “will put its neck on a block for anyone.” For his part, the president had stated that he spoke to the minister who denied the allegations. However, he said, “no one will be held unaccountable.”

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• against, Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Nigel Dharamlall, police, School

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