A Chauncey man who suspected his girlfriend was cheating, smelled her clothing and asked her if she was wearing underwear, has been ordered to pay her EC$500 in compensation.
The man, Fidel Francois, a 32-year-old carpenter and mason, was ordered by Senior Magistrate Tamika McKenzie to compensate Kittanna Codougan, 23, also of Chauncey, EC$500 forthwith or spend five months in prison.
Francois pleaded guilty at the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court to a charge that on March 20, at Chauncey, he assaulted McKenzie, occasioning actual bodily harm.
Codougan had asked the court for EC$5,000 in compensation, saying that since Francois choked her, she has been feeling depressed and cries a lot.
She told the court that her back and neck still hurt.
The medical findings read by the magistrate said that Codougan’s injuries included swellings, bruises and superficial blood trauma.
Codougan told the court she did not “feel safe” with Francois and that after the incident, Francois had returned to the house and had threatened to burn it down.
The facts read in court are that Francois and Codougan were in a relationship for over nine months, during which they had gotten into many verbal and physical altercations, but neither had ever made a report to the police.
On March 20, about 9:10 p.m., they returned from Kingstown and stopped at Rasto’s Bar, located in the South Leeward village.
Codougan gave Francois money to buy drinks as promised and she went home.
At home, Codougan began cleaning the house and Francois arrived a few minutes later, looked at Codougan and asked her, “What is the scene?”
Codougan asked Francois the same question and as she tried to pass him, he blocked her.
Codougan then told Francois that she knew he was going to drink them come home with some kind of “f****ry” (nonsense).
She pushed him aside and continued cleaning.
Francois then went up to Codougan, smelled her clothing and asked her where she had been and whether she was wearing underwear.
Codougan did not respond.
She went into the porch but Francois followed her and tried to get her inside the house but she refused and headed towards the road instead.
Francois followed her, held onto her and insisted that she return inside the house.
Codougan continued walking and told Francois she would go inside when she was ready.
Francois then pushed her into a wall, boxed and slapped her across her body, placed both of his hands around her neck, lifted her up and pushed her against the wall.
Francois then released Codougan and ran towards the road. He returned and began beating her again.
Francois then went into the house and brought out a nail gun and was trying to power it on, but it did not power on.
He went back into the building and came back outside with some tools, including an axe in his right hand.
He approached Codougan and told her, “Gyel alyo does want man kill alyo enuh!”
The Questelles Police Station was contacted via telephone and officers arrived a few minutes later and arrested Francois.
In mitigation, Francois told the court that “not all” of the facts presented by the prosecution were true.
He admitted to smelling Codougan’s clothing and said that because her dress had a hole, he knew she was wearing underwear.
Francois said he had seen a man leaving the yard when he came from Rasto’s Bar and only slapped Codougan when she bit into his shoulder.
“So, you beat she up because you believe she was cheating?” the magistrate asked Francois.
He told the court he did not lift Codougan or push her against a wall and that he felt “regretful” after a moment.
He said that since the incident, he had only gone back to the house because he had forgotten his cellular phone there.
He denied threatening to burn the house down.
The magistrate said she had not seen any remorse from Francois.
The magistrate had also considered a six-and-a-half-month jail term, but bonded Francois for nine months in the sum of EC$1,000.
If he breaches the bond, he must pay the sum forthwith or spend six months in prison.
