‘Uncle Ganesh’ gets 18 years for attempted rape of 4-year-old child

Jan 22, 2026 News

---

(Kaieteur News) – A 46-year-old man who was found guilty of attempted rape of a 4-year-old in 2022, was on Wednesday sentenced to 18 years in prison for the offence.

The ruling was handed down at the Demerara High Court before acting Chief Justice Navindra Singh.

The accused, Ganesh Lewis of St. Lawrence, East Bank Essequibo, was originally charged with two offences; attempted rape and rape of a child under the age of 16 contrary to Section 10(3) of the Sexual Offences Act, Chapter 8:03, and in contravention of Section 36(a) of the Act.

The crime was allegedly committed in January 2022. However, Lewis pleaded not guilty to both charges when the trial commenced on December 12 before Justice Singh. Lewis was found not guilty on the charge of rape, but was unanimously found guilty on the alternative charge of attempted rape of a child under 16.

During the sentencing, the prosecution led by Christopher Belfield, with assistance from Simran Gajraj and Geneva Wills, outlined several aggravating factors against Lewis. These included the vulnerability of the victim and the nature and seriousness of the offence, the sexual offence crisis and its prevalence in Guyana and the wider Caribbean, particularly as it affects children. Further aggravating factors cited were victim-blaming, Lewis’ lack of remorse, and the severe and lasting impact of sexual offences on children. Additionally, the prosecution emphasised the importance of sentencing as a deterrent and underscored the need for a cultural shift in Guyana’s approach to sexual offences.

Belfield argued that Lewis committed the offence in August 2022, when he was 43 years old, while the victim was just four years old. He explained that Lewis deliberately exploited the child’s tender age and extreme vulnerability.

According to Belfield, the convicted man shared a close relationship with the victim’s family, frequently spending time at their home, eating with them, and being regarded as a trusted family friend. To the child, he was known as “Uncle Ganesh”—a position of trust that Belfield said Lewis ultimately betrayed in the most vile and disrespectful manner. “He violated not only the sanctity of the victim’s body, but also the child’s psychological self and future,” Belfield told the court.

Belfield further emphasised that Lewis took advantage of the child’s vulnerability and lack of cognitive capacity to understand the nature and intent of the offence, describing the conduct as completely unforgivable and one that, he said, “lacks the mercy of any court.”

Secondly, in addressing the seriousness and nature of the offence, Belfield stated that on the day in question, Lewis took the child away from his grandmother at her stall to an isolated area near his brother’s barbershop. Lewis then attempted to rape the child by pulling down both his pants as well as the child’s own, and, “placed his penis around the region of his buttocks.” The prosecutor emphasised that the circumstances of the offence amounted to “cold, deliberate predation”, highlighting that Lewis had intentionally planned the act. “The conduct was a settled sexual intention,” Belfield told the court.

He further explained that the offence remained inchoate due to intervention, and not because of any abandonment or restraint by the convicted man, noting that the only reason the act did not continue was because Lewis was caught mid-way.

Additionally, Belfield highlighted the sexual offence epidemic in Guyana, noting that its true extent is reflected not only in reported cases, but in the thousands of unreported stories, the family and community accounts of children being abused across generations. He emphasised that in most instances, these offences are committed by individuals known to the victim and who occupy positions of trust, influence, or responsibility.

Belfield also informed the court that Lewis, in his defence, resorted to shifting the blame of the situation onto the victim, his family, and the witness, to which the prosecution admitted that such a move is a common trend that is often displayed by persons guilty of sexual crimes.

The prosecution also emphasised the impact of sexual offences on children, noting that child sexual abuse inflicts deep and lasting psychological harm, particularly as young victims struggle to cope with the chaos and trauma that follow such experiences.

“Your Honour, this is an experience that will be etched in the victim’s mind forever, and all of these consequences flow from the actions of this convicted person, not from any exercise of free will by the victim,” Belfield told the court.

Meanwhile, the now six-year-old victim, in a statement read aloud to the court, expressed satisfaction that Lewis is set to be sentenced for his crime. The child described the close relationship he once shared with Lewis and spoke about how he has felt since the incident. “Ganesh was like a family to me. He used to come by us and hang out. I feel bad about what happened. I am happy that he has to go to jail because he did something bad to me,” the child stated.

In his closing statements, Lewis’s lawyer, Ronald Bostwick, sought to shed light on his client’s background. He described Lewis as a quiet member of his community and a regular churchgoer who lives alone, is single, and has no children. Bostwick noted that in his younger days, Lewis had dropped out of primary school due to economic difficulties. Despite these challenges, he supported himself by working as a security guard, supplementing his income with earnings from electrical repair work.

Addressing Lewis’s attitude toward the offence, Bostwick explained that Lewis maintained the witness had provided a false statement to the police. “This means there is no mitigation by way of an expression of remorse. Overall, Lewis considers the witness’s statement to be mistaken rather than deliberately truthful,” he said.

Bostwick further urged the judge to consider Lewis’s circumstances, including what he described as a “poor start in life,” arguing that his upbringing had contributed to his “poor critical thinking.” He appealed for a sentence that would allow Lewis the opportunity for rehabilitation. “I hope, Your Honour, you can give this man a sentence that would allow him to receive rehabilitation in prison. He is not an old man; he can be rehabilitated,” Bostwick concluded.

Lewis during the sentencing refused to speak when given an opportunity by the court.

As such, Justice Singh in handing down his sentence imposed a starting point sentence of 20 years. However, he deducted five years for favourable probation report, but added an additional three due to the youthfulness of the victim and no remorse showed by Lewis.  In total, Lewis was sentenced to serve a full 18 years in prison, having never been on remand. Singh emphasised that the severity of the sentence was intended to send a strong message across the country about the grave consequences of child sexual offences.

“A strong message must be sent, especially in Guyana, where sexual offences against children appear to be extraordinarily high. A strong message must be sent to the society that paedophiles and child molesters will be dealt with severely by the courts,” he stated.

Additionally, an order was issued directing the department of social services, or any similar agency that has been providing counselling, to continue services for the child until they are deemed no longer necessary.

---

• attempted, Ganesh Lewis, rape, rape of child, Ronald Bostwick

---