A probation officer at New Amsterdam has been removed from a sexual abuse case after a magistrate expressed dissatisfaction with a report submitted to the court.
The report was reportedly rejected because it was too detailed and did not contain the information the court had requested. However, according to reports, the probation officer was asked to do the report through her office and never spoke with the magistrate prior to producing it.
This recent development has drawn attention to the case which had been relatively low-key owing to the close relations of the accused and the virtual complainant (VC), and has resulted in additional suffering to the VC, who is a girl under 14 years old.
Emotions are also running high among the family members of the VC, according to reports. The next court hearing is scheduled for Christmas Eve day.
Stabroek News was told that when the matter was first reported the accused was initially arrested but released. He was later re-arrested after the family went back to the police and the matter was sent to the Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions.
The accused in the case is alleged to have sexually abused the teenager during the months of October and November this year. He allegedly forced himself on the girl on repeated occasions while she was at his home and reportedly threatened to kill her if she told anyone.
When the matter was initially heard in court the magistrate ordered a probation report to ascertain the safety of the girl if the accused were released on bail.
This specific request was not filtered down to the probation officer from all indications and so the report prepared provided information on the accused’s character, his background, the allegations made and the VC’s current state of fear.
Sources close to the case told Stabroek News that the probation report was done so the court could read the information and draw a conclusion. But the magistrate was reportedly angered by it and ordered the officer off the case.
A new probation officer was assigned to the case and a complaint was made against the officer who prepared the report.
This newspaper was informed by a reliable legal source that a magistrate has the power to pull the probation officer off the case if the officer fails to follow the instruction of the court. However, when requesting a probation report outside the sentencing period the magistrate is required to point out the areas he/she would like to be addressed in the report. According to the source, the probation officer must be advised otherwise the report would be the standard type.