A 34-year-old former maxi-taxi conductor has been sentenced to four-and-a-half years in jail for having sex with a 13-year-old schoolgirl.Victor Gumbs, who is now a roofing contractor, stood silently in the prisoner enclosure of the Port-of-Spain Second Criminal Court, as the sentence was read by Justice Malcolm Holdip on Thursday.
Gumbs, formerly of Ackal Trace, Santa Cruz, was convicted of having sex with a minor.According to the evidence, Gumbs, of Ackal Trace, Santa Cruz, met the teenager while she was travelling to school in his maxi-taxi.He was arrested after the girl was reported missing by her parents and was later found sleeping in his house. The incident occurred on October 12, 2002.
During the trial, the victim attempted to recant on her initial allegations against Gumbs. She was later deemed a hostile witness. Gumbs also testified in his defence and claimed he did not ask the girl her age before he took her to his house.While sentencing Gumbs, Holdip raised concerns over the prevalence of the offence.
He said: "Generally society does not see this sort of sexual activity as a criminal offence although it has been in the books since 1986."Holdip said that the legislation was introduced to protect children especially those under 14, who can not give consent.Gumbs attorney Nikolas Ali, in his mitigation plea, asked Holdip to be lenient in his sentencing.
