_{Photo: Robert Usher, convicted}

BELIZE CITY, Mon. Nov. 25, 2024

Tonight, Robert Usher, 34, the man who took advantage of a child from the age of 8 until she was 17, taking every opportunity he could to sexually abuse her over a ten-year period, is spending his first night on remand, pending sentencing set for January 6, 2025.

In the meantime, Justice Candace Nanton will be contemplating from now until after the Christmas holidays an appropriate sentence to hand down to Usher for sexually assaulting the minor, repeatedly, despite the child telling her mother.

The child testified that when she cried for help, her cry went unheard by her own mother, who she said didn’t believe her; and so, she kept quiet until she had been raped not once, not twice, but three times by Usher. And that’s when she told her aunt, and the police got involved and investigated the assault/rape, which led to Usher being arrested and charged criminally.

The presiding judge told the court that allegations of such nature being relived in a trial over a decade later had its challenges, where in this case the victim’s memory was a bit faded about precise dates and times. But in the end, the court believed the victim, who testified at age 22 about her ugly childhood trauma, and her evidence and testimony could not be shaken or disbelieved, hence Usher being found guilty of all 5 counts.

The charges were of aggravated assault of an indecent nature – count 1; indecent assault – count 2; and counts 3, 4 and 5 were for rape of a child which occurred in the period between September 2010 in Belize City until the age of 17 when she moved from the neighborhood where she was being sexually abused and raped continuously.

It was not until October 2024 that the decade-old case came to trial where the victim, now 22, testified “In camera” where, embarrassed by what happened to her and still in fear of her abuser, a screen was placed between her and Usher.

The victim told the court that at age 8, on September 28, 2011, until 2019 Usher touched her inappropriately on more than three occasions when other children were not around, and she told him not to do it, but he continued.

The child testified that when she would not allow him to do what he wanted, he would cover her mouth, or threaten to hurt her.

She said at the age of 13 he raped her for the first time, and then two more times after that.

The child told the court that whenever Usher touched her inappropriately, she told her mother but she didn’t believe her.

Usher, who was represented in the trial by attorney Lynden Jones of Corozal, gave an unsworn testimony from the dock, where he denied the allegations, saying he was working at the time the child claimed, so he could not do what the victim said occurred over a ten-year period. However, on a number of occasions during that period, the child would have been left in his care with other children, noted Justice Candace.

In finding him guilty Justice Nanton noted that, while the medical evidence could only show that sexual intercourse had occurred, and that it could not say who the culprit was, it’s the evidence of the virtual complainant who testified that Usher was the man who molested her for those years and raped her.

Justice Nanton told the court prior to handing down her guilty verdict on all counts, that the court is satisfied that the medical report is consistent with what the victim said had happened to her; and while there were inconsistencies found in her testimony, she found her account plausible.

Members of Usher’s family who were outside the court were outraged with the guilty verdict and say they will appeal the conviction.