Ex city policeman Clifton Pellew, who had been accused of raping a juvenile, has had the charge against him discontinued after the now-adult complainant indicated to the court that he doesn’t want the case to proceed.
When the matter was called yesterday morning before Justice Navindra Singh, the virtual complainant who is now an adult, said that he has since moved on with his life and does not want the matter to go forward.
In the circumstances, it was discontinued after Justice Singh directed the jury to formally return a verdict of not guilty.
The case was called at the Sexual Offences Court of the High Court in Demerara.
Background
Pellew, a Lance Corporal of the City Constabulary, was charged back in February of 2018 with the rape of a juvenile who was in his custody at the constabulary’s Regent Street outpost in August of 2017.
At the conclusion of the Preliminary Inquiry into the charge, a Magistrate committed Pellew to stand trial and placed him on $500,000 bail pending his trial.
City Hall’s leadership had faced significant criticism for its handling of the case since the allegations against Pellew surfaced.
Despite a report being made internally about the alleged assault, the municipality did not formally contact the police until about a month after media reports about the case.
Pellew and another constabulary officer who reported the alleged assault were sent on administrative leave after initially being served with termination letters.
