Chutney singer jailed for 20 years

DESCRIBING him as a “menace to society,” a San Fernando High Court judge yesterday sentenced  a chutney singer to 20 years imprisonment after he pleaded guilty to charges of raping and buggering a woman, who believed him to be a taxi driver.

Justice Prakash Moosai told Nicholas Gosine — a 29-year-old singer made popular locally by the CD titled Bhowgie From Suriname — that all women should be protected from him. Moosai, presiding in the San Fernando Second Assize Court, sentenced Gosine to 15 years’ imprisonment with hard labour for raping the 26-year-old wai-tress/cashier on July 7, 2000. The judge slapped an additional five-year jail term on Gosine for buggering the woman. Both sentences, Justice Moosai ordered, are to run concurrently. Around 12.30 pm on that day, the woman was standing at Fyzabad Junction awaiting a taxi to take her home in Santa Flora. Gosine pulled up in his car and pretending to be a taxi driver, offered to carry the woman home. Just before she entered the car, the woman told a male friend, who at the time was standing with her, to make a note of the licence plate number of Gosine’s vehicle.

Gosine later took the woman to a lonely road where he raped her on the back seat of his car. She screamed and fought back, but the accused still proceeded to bugger the woman, who is a mother of one. Gosine then drove to Murray Trace in Siparia where he ordered the woman to perform oral sex on him. When she refused, he told her he had connections with a well-known Muslim organisation and he would have her killed. When the case last came up, Gosine pleaded guilty to charges of rape and buggery. State Attorney Brambhanan Dubay prosecuted while Gosine was defended by attorney Dexter Bailey, who yesterday made a stirring plea in mitigation to Justice Moosai, who asked the judge to temper justice with mercy.  Bailey displayed the chutney CD as well as a cassette containing Gosine’s songs. The attorney even asked Justice Moosai to have the music played in court to demonstrate the rapist’s musical talent. The judge refused the request, saying that he was no doubt convinced of Gosine’s musical ability.

The victim, who sat next to her mother, cried openly when prosecutor Dubay told the judge that only last month, Justice Malcolm Holdip fined Gosine $10,000 for the unrelated offence of having sex with a minor. In passing sentence yesterday, Justice Moosai told Gosine that his acts had such an effect on the victim that she had suspended conjugal relationships with her husband and was afraid to go to work. The woman, the judge added, was simply scared to travel in taxis. Justice Moosai further told Gosine that the victim as a result was overprotective of her daughter. “You are a menace to society. Women must be able to travel in maxis and taxis without fear. “They should be protected from you,” Justice Moosai said as he passed sentence.