Police Constable Found Guilty of Sexually Assaulting 13-Year-Old Girl

Forty-three-year-old Police Constable Reginald Diego, who remains on interdiction, was found guilty of sexual assault in the Corozal Magistrate’s Court late yesterday evening.  The assault was carried out against a thirteen-year-old girl. The conviction follows a trial where prosecutors Derrick Staine and Alifa Elrington presented evidence from six witnesses regarding an incident alleged to have occurred on March 20, 2021. The victim, who was fifteen when she testified privately, recounted her ordeal. In his defense, Diego, who represented himself after being given time to find legal counsel but failing to do so, testified under oath. He claimed he presumed the victim was an adult due to regulations at the time and suggested other officers coerced her into making the accusation. However, Diego admitted to being on duty in the area at the time, giving the then-thirteen-year-old a ride from Libertad to Corozal, and taking her to a seaside location near a roundhouse – the place where the assault was alleged to have happened. He denied the allegation of inappropriately touching her. Despite his denial, the presiding Magistrate found the prosecution’s witnesses credible and reliable. The Magistrate noted that the victim made a complaint to an independent witness and then a Woman Police Officer shortly after the incident, which corroborated her testimony. The court dismissed the possibility of coercion, stating there wasn’t time for it. Furthermore, evidence revealed Diego knew the victim’s mother well, leading the court to infer he knew the girl was a minor at the time. Constable Diego has been allowed to remain on his previous four-thousand-dollar bail. Sentencing has been deferred to April 30. Before then, the Magistrate has requested a social inquiry report and will hear mitigation pleas on Diego’s behalf.