Sex charge read summarily to acting snr supt

THE Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions has withdrawn the indecent assault charge wrongly laid as indictable against acting Snr Supt Samuel Seepersad.

The police have instead laid it summarily.

Seepersad, 58, who was attached to the Central Division Police district, reappeared yesterday in the Chaguanas Magistrates’ Court, where the same charge was read.

Senior magistrate Wendy Dougdeen-Bally told Seepersad that on diverse days between March 31 and June 1, he pursued a course of conduct in which he repeatedly requested to see and suck the breast of a woman and inappropriately touched her bottom at the Chaguanas Police Station, such conduct amounting to harassment.

Asked by the magistrate how he pleaded, Seepersad answered, “Not guilty.”

Seepersad, who has 39 years’ service, and acting Supt Rohan Pardasie, 58, were both arrested on July 31 by officers of the Professional Standards Bureau led by Snr Supt Totaram Dookhie.

They had appeared before Dougdeen-Bally on August 2, but were not called upon to plead.

In the case of Pardasie, the charge of indecent assault on a woman in March 2014 was laid indictably and he was not called upon to plead. He is on $100,000 bail.

At the time of the alleged incident, Pardasie was attached to the Central Division Police headquarters.

The issue of the charge laid indictably against Seepersad was argued before Dougdeen-Bally. It is a summary offence and ought not to have been laid indictably.

Indictable cases are of a more serious nature and are heard before a judge and jury. The practice is to lay information in the court on an indictable matter and leave it for the magistrate to do a preliminary inquiry to determine whether a prima facie case has been made out for a jury, reasonably directed, to convict.

Summary cases are less serious and are heard and determined by a magistrate.

Dougdeen-Bally had released Seepersad on $75,000 bail and adjourned the case for yesterday pending the correction.

When the case was called, the magistrate announced that the DPP had issued a notice of discontinuance in respect of the indictable information. Former member of the Police Service Commission attorney Dinanath Ramkissoon and former state attorney Renuka Rambhajan represented Seepersad.

Ramkissoon asked for disclosure to the defence. He also asked if the victim was present in court, but the police prosecutor said she could not attend because she was not well. Dougdeen-Bally told the police to disclose all material to the defence in time for the next hearing on November 5.