COA Rejects Man’s Bid To Overturn Rape Conviction

NASSAU, BAHAMAS – A man convicted of raping a 17-year-old tourist in San Salvador has lost a bid to overturn his conviction and 20-year sentence. 

The Court of Appeal rejected an application for Henry Darren Gay to appeal his conviction and sentences out of time.

In April 2014,  the victim and her parents were visiting their vacation home in San Salvador.

The young woman went for a bike ride and on her way home a man, a man assaulted and raped her.

Gay was arrested within an hour of the incident. He was convicted in 2018 following a trial.

The primary evidence against Gay was the identification of the victim.

She picked Gay out from a photo lineup, saying that he had distinctive eyes.

However, defense lawyer Romona Farquharson-Seymour argued that the case should have ended in a mistrial after it was revealed that the teen’s initial description of her attacker had changed.

First, she said the rapist had a gap in his teeth. However, she realized that she was mistaken when the prosecutor sent her a photo of Gay a year before the trial.

Notwithstanding, the discrepancy, the young woman said she was certain that Gay was the rapist.

Justices of Appeal Sir Michael Barnett, Jon Isaacs and Carolita Bethell ruled that the judge’s decision to admit the identification evidence did not affect the fairness of the trial.The judges also found that the sentence was appropriate for the offense.