A 64-year-old man who eight years ago raped a 16-year-old girl, whom he had taken in to support her education after her father died, has been sentenced to more than 10 years in jail.
Lautoka High Court Judge Justice Sunil Sharma sentenced the retiree to 14 years, 10 months, and five days imprisonment. He will need to serve at least 12 years before he is eligible for parole.
Court documents showed that the victim, now in her 20s, moved in with the man’s family primarily for her education after the death of her father in 2005. He assisted her financially and provided for her necessities.
In 2014, they were alone in the house. She was in the shower when the man pushed open the bathroom door and raped her. He then threatened her not to tell anyone. However, two days later, she told her sister-in-law and moved out of the house to her brother’s.
Sometime later, the man reached out to the victim and pleaded for her forgiveness, which she refused. The matter was not reported however until 2017. He was arrested, interviewed, and charged. The sentencing comes less than a month after his conviction.
