A man who is accused of raping a 13-year-old girl with whom he shared a friendship, was on Tuesday committed to stand trial for the offence at the Berbice High Court.
Birball Soochit, 24, a painter of 18 Section D’Edward Village, West Coast Berbice (WCB) was not required to plead to the indictable charge which stated that on May 28, 2020, at Number Four Village, WCB, he engaged in sexual penetration of a child under the age of 16.
At the conclusion of the Preliminary Inquiry (PI) at the Blairmont Magistrate’s Court, Magistrate Peter Hugh ruled that the prosecution led sufficient evidence against Soochit. As such, the rape accused was committed to stand trial for the offence at the next practicable sitting of the Berbice Criminal Assizes.
Magistrate Hugh however released Soochit on $50,000 bail pending the hearing and determination of the trial.
According to reports, Soochit and the teenager are known to each other. The teenager told the Police that she and Soochit first had a conversation at the market and they both exchange numbers.
They would communicate with each other via telephone. On the day in question, the teen girl reportedly contacted Soochit and they met at a street in Number Four Village, WCB, where he raped her in his car.
The matter was subsequently reported and following an investigation, Soochit was arrested and charged.
