Girls, guilty of stabbing man, to return to court today

The court has summoned parents, a seconday school Principal and social workers to the courtroom today as it continues to contemplate an appropriate sentence for two young girls guilty of the stabbing of an ex-boyfriend of one of the girls.

The older defendant, a Green Hill resident, is 17 years old. Her co-defendant, an Old Montrose resident told the police and the court that she was 16 years old. Police have since informed that she is 12 years old.

It was revealed that the defendants have known Kevin DaSilva, who is a 24-year-old resident of Green Hill, for more than three years. He was also said to have been in a relationship with the 17-year-old. There are said to be videos of a sexual nature on DaSilva’s phone of him and the 17-year-old. DaSilva apparently showed these videos to the younger girl, who then told the 17-year-old that DaSilva had shown her the videos. This is said to have made the older girl upset.

On January 7, at about 7:30p.m, the younger of the two called DaSilva and asked him if he wanted to hang out. He agreed and they met at Lodge Village. They were sitting at the side of the road together and, due to it being cold, DaSilva gave the young girl his jacket. A few minutes after he did this, she got up and went behind him and sat. As she did so, she wrapped the jacket around his chest and tied it behind his back. DaSilva thought nothing of this and continued talking to her. A few minutes later he felt a sharp pain to the left side of his neck, and then another to the left side of his back, and another to the back of his head. He got up and saw his former girlfriend standing behind him with a knife. He wrestled with her, noticing during this time that his clothes were soaked in blood. He said his assailant also grabbed and tried to push him over a wall. He said he got away and managed to pull the knife away from her. The two girls ran, leaving him on the ground bleeding. Superintendent Timothy Hazelwood, who was passing, took him to the hospital.

A report was made to the police and the two young women appeared in the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court (KMC) on Wednesday, January 12. The duo, who are both small in stature, stood by the dock, while DaSilva stood on the opposite side of the courtroom in the witness box. A wound to the back of his head a few inches above his neck, which appeared to be closed by a few stitches was visible.

The older defendant said that she is a form five student of the Dr JP Eustace Memorial Secondary School.

The younger defendant who gave her age as 16, said she wasn’t in school, and was living with her cousin.

The younger defendant informed the court that the reason she wasn’t living with her mother was because her mother’s husband doesn’t want her there.

Senior Magistrate, Rickie Burnett noted their youthful ages, but pointed out that it is a very serious offence which was clearly planned.

“Prosecutor I am not going to sentence these two defendants today. First of all one is still in school and I think the Principal should be aware that one of his/her students is before the court on a very serious criminal charge,” he said.

“I am wondering how it is that a 16 year old and a 17 year old can be thinking like this,” he pondered.
The older girl denied that DaSilva was her boyfriend. However DaSilva said that they were “very close”, and then said that they were in a relationship.

As to a reason for the events, the 17-year-old said it wasn’t about the video and that she didn’t know about it. She also said that the younger girl “never” informed her about it.

The other defendant said the reason why she tied the jacket was because, “Just tie him up.”

The magistrate told her that she must have a reason and that what she did was abnormal.

She said that she was playing.

When the 17-year-old was stabbing him, the younger girl said she did nothing.

“You see your friend stabbing somebody with a knife, they’re right in front of you and that was okay to be done?…” Burnett asked her.

“…You have two minds here, at this age. This is chilling,” he said. He noted that there was something going on in the background that he needed to know about.

“Prosecutor, I want the parents of these two defendants, the Principal of the school and the welfare social services department to be involved in this matter before I sentence these two young people. A lot is happening in the background that I don’t know of and I need to know,” the magistrate said. He added, “…The parents have to come because they brought them into this world. You just can’t abandon them and expect society to take care of them.”

Although the 17-year-old lives with her mother, the court was told that the police had contacted her mother and she had refused to come to the station.

The prosecution made an application for a summons for her.

The magistrate ordered that the parents, Principal and a representative of the social services department be in court today, January 14.

The two defendants remain in custody until then.