Man freed of 2 sex offences

The 59-year-old man was before Justice Larry Lalla at the Port-of-Spain Second Criminal Court charged with incest and indecent assault on a female relative, who was three years old at the time of the alleged incidents on an unknown date between January 2000 and May 2001.

The trial began on August 2, and State attorney George Busby called nine witnesses.

The virtual complainant, whose evidence was a mere formality, began giving evidence on August 3.

After conference with the judge and defence attorneys, Rangee Dolsingh SC and Michelle Solomon on August 4, Busby told the judge he could not proceed with the case.

Lalla directed the jury to return not guilty verdicts on each count and discharged the man, who had been tried for the same offences in January of this year.

The jury had then failed to reach a decision and a retrial had been ordered.