Pellau Magazine

Kidnapper boyfriend to be sentenced on Friday Dereck Achong A 32-year-old man who was convicted of kidnapping and falsely imprisoning his girlfriend after accusing her of being unfaithful will know his fate next Friday. Dinelle Smith yesterday sat silently as his lawyer, Raphael Morgan, presented his mitigation plea before Justice Maria Wilson in the Port -of -Spain High Court. Smith was convicted by a nine-member jury before Wilson on July 16. He was accused of three criminal charges which arose out of a dispute with his then girlfriend, Abigail Lewis, on March 22, 2008. The charges were kidnapping, false imprisonment and assault occasioning grievous bodily harm. During the short trial, the court heard that on the day of the incident, the couple was liming at a savannah in Macoya when Smith accused Lewis of infidelity and hit her several times. The jury heard Smith then drove to the lookout point along the Lady Young Road in Morvant where he broke a glass bottle across her face before threatening to throw her off a cliff. Police intervened after the couple returned to their Jarvis Street, Vistabella home and Lewis’ relatives saw her injuries. Lewis told investigators that Smith threatened that if she left him, he would find her. While Smith was on trial, Lewis refused to testify against her ex-boyfriend and was deemed a hostile witness. She said she wanted to move on with her life. Her witness statements, which were recorded during the preliminary inquiry in the Magistrates Court, were entered into evidence during the trial. In response to Morgan’s plea, state prosecutor Joy Balkaran said Smith had two pending charges for kidnapping for ransom stemming from an incident in 2005. Balkaran noted that on the day of the incident, Smith was not intoxicated and since being charged he showed no remorse for his actions. http://m.guardian.co.tt/news/2012-07-26/kidnapper-boyfriend-be-sentenced-friday