KINGSTOWN (CMC):
A 34-year-old security guard, who circulated nude photos of a woman after she rejected his demand for sex, has been fined and given a suspended prison sentence.
Senior Magistrate Tammika Da Silva-McKenzie sentenced Lendon Abraham to six months and seven days in prison, suspended for three years. He must also pay a fine of EC$10,000 (one EC dollar=US$0.37 cents) and EC$2,500 within a year and by November 22, this year respectively or spend one year in jail for each default, to run concurrently.
Abraham, aka Mitchie, was charged under the Cybercrimes Act. He pleaded guilty on May 7 at the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court to a charge that between April 1 and April 6, 2024, he used a computer system to send threatening and intimidating statements to the virtual complainant (VC).
Abraham also pleaded guilty to a charge that on April 6, 2024, he transmitted sexually explicit images that included personal identification information of the VC without her consent.
Abraham had been remanded in custody until his sentencing.
The court heard that Abraham was communicating with the 39-year-old woman who sent him nude photos of herself. He later demanded that they have sex, but when she refused to, Abraham threatened to circulate the photographs and proceeded to do so, when the woman did not give in to his demand.
During the trial, Senior Magistrate Da Silva-McKenzie told Abraham that she had to adjourn his sentencing because she had asked the prosecution for submissions on sentencing and had only received them that day
Asked if he had any objections to the adjournment, Abraham, referring to prison, said, “I didn’t want to go back round there”.
The magistrate told him that the advantage of being on remand was that the time would be deducted from his sentence.
“I don’t like it round there,” Abraham reiterated.
“I understand but I believe it is better for all of us if you are around there,” Tammika Da Silva-McKenzie said.