GRANNY FREED OF SEX CHARGE

TWO years after she was accused of carrying out a serious act of indecency against her grandson, then aged seven, a Sangre Grande grandmother was freed on Tuesday after it was learnt that the child had changed his story. The woman is now seeking answers.

Senior magistrate Gillian Scotland dismissed the charge against the 57-year-old woman, who was accused of forcing her grandson to perform a sex act on her between 2014 and 2015.

Contacted by Newsday, the woman said she felt “a bit relieved,” but now wants to know one thing: “I want to know where he got that from.”

The boy claimed that for three years he was forced to perform the sex act on his grandmother, who in turn also performed a sex act on him. He further claimed that she threatened him with punishment if he ever told anyone.

The woman said she was “deeply hurt” by the accusation, but added that at no time was she ashamed, because she knew it was untrue, and because of her faith in God.

“I was hurt, but I am not ashamed. God knows me. People who know me knew it wasn’t true.

“Still, it was unexpected,” she said.

Scotland dismissed the single charge against the woman after she was told that in March the child had given police a second statement withdrawing the allegation. Added to this, the police officer who charged the woman stopped coming to court. It was determined the investigator never followed up with the Director of Public Prosecutions for new directions on how to proceed with the case when the child recanted his claim.

The woman was represented by attorney Rosario Sookdeo.

As she relived the day and a half she spent in a cell at the Sangre Grande police station, the woman said she never thought anyone would make such an allegation against her – and fears the psychological scars on her grandson.

“He needs counselling. I am not afraid to say that if the Child Protection Unit and the Children’s Authority did the right thing from the beginning, the truth would have come out. I am worried about my grandson,” the woman said.

Despite her ordeal, the woman said she has a message for him. “I want him to know I will always be there and that I love him unconditionally. That will never change.”

The woman said she had tried to take him to live with her and is still prepared to do so.

“I was seeking help for him. I went to family services, the community police and social services.”

She did so because of problems he was having with other relatives.

“With me he got love. He was never unloved,” she said, adding that she had a special bond with her grandson, who would confide in her if anything was troubling him. It is for this reason she was shocked when he made the allegation.

“At his age, where did that come from?”

She is also hurt because she thought she had a good relationship with the child’s mother, but does not want to speculate on why the allegation was made.

According to reports, it was the child’s mother who reported the incident to the Cunupia police, who contacted their colleagues at the Child Protection Unit in the Eastern Division, who began investigations which led to the charge being laid.