Well-known entertainment promoter Colin Mack yesterday walked out of the Georgetown High Court a free man, almost 6 years after he was initially charged with raping a 19-year-old girl.
In Justice Navindra Singh’s packed courtroom, Mack was deemed not guilty by a 12-member jury on charges of rape, assault, and abduction. The verdict on all three charges, which came almost five hours after the jury initially retired to deliberate, was unanimous.
At about 11 am yesterday, the jury entered Justice Singh’s courtroom to be briefed on the evidence accrued in a week of testimony. The testimonies of key witnesses, including Mack and the accuser, were also recapped.
At about 11.45 am, the jury retired for the first time and emerged at about 3.20 pm. Before they could even enter the courtroom, persons swarmed in, eager to hear the verdict. However, the foreman indicated that the jurors needed further direction. The foreman also requested the testimony of another witness, but was told that the jury must determine a verdict from the evidence already presented.
Justice Singh also opined that the case was not a complicated one and was based on the issue of credibility.
Following the brief directions, the jury of 6 men and 6 women retired once more and returned about half an hour later, having completed their deliberations.
As the foreman was questioned, Mack stood seemingly calm in the docks, his hands clasped behind his back. His composure was completely different to that of his family and friends. His girlfriend sat tense in her seat, her mouth covered by her fists while her mother beside her had a hand on shoulder. Mack’s mother also sat nearby.
As the final not guilty verdict was returned, the young woman let out a barely audible, “Thank you God!” while Mack’s mother smiled jubilantly.
In comparison, Mack simply nodded and eagerly made his way out of the docks when Justice Singh declared him free.
In the other corner was a scene of complete devastation. The virtual complainant sat stone-still in her seat, her eyes shrouded by tinted sunglasses. Her relatives instead made their way out of the courtroom. Their expressions varied from shock and disappointment to outright anger.
The accuser finally unfroze and made her way out of the courtroom to be consoled by her friends and family. When approached by this newspaper, the young woman could only shake her head in disbelief and hug herself tightly.
In April 2009, Mack initially appeared before the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court charged with rape and was later committed to stand trial in the High Court. The trial got underway last week.
While the VC maintained that she had been abducted, assaulted and raped by Mack following a night out with the man, Mack insisted that the sex had been consensual.
The young woman had taken to the stand last week and given testimony that lasted nearly 7 hours.
A medical report, which was admitted as evidence in the rape trial, had revealed that she had sustained injuries to her eyes, elbow and genitals. The young woman was the state’s main witness in the trial.
