Convict attacks schoolgirl, says he was hungry for blood

A man who told the court he was hungry for blood has been sentenced to six additional years in prison.

Tedford Baptiste, a resident of Sandy Bay, appeared before magistrate Rickie Burnett at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court, charged with entering the dwelling house of Kenroy Thomas and assaulting Angella Richards on May 26, 2017.

The court heard that at 7:45 p.m., Baptiste removed a section of the bedroom window of Richards’ 14-year-old daughter. On checking the room, Richards saw Baptiste lying face down between the bed and window. Baptiste got up, held on to Richards and cut her with a sharp object on her left hand.

Baptiste pleaded guilty to entering Richards’ house and assaulting her.

He also pleaded guilty to assaulting Amron Sutherland on June 1, 2017 at London, Sandy Bay, but in relation to a charge of assaulting a 10-year-old girl on that same day, Baptiste told the court the child was not present at the scene.

The 10-year-old recalled walking to school at about 8:30 a.m., when Baptiste came out of the bush and pointed a knife at her. She was crying and pleading for help when a car approached and she was able to run home to her mother.

A secondary school student present in the car told the court that on reaching ‘Cable Rock,’ she saw a little girl crying and running and a man running over the bank. Amron Sutherland, driver of the car stopped and went to look, whereupon Baptiste returned, armed with a knife and stone.

He ordered the driver back into the vehicle, with which the driver complied. When the driver tried to wind up the window, the teen recalls Baptiste inserting his hands into the vehicle and removing the key from the ignition, before fleeing the scene.

After Baptiste removed the vehicle’s key, Sutherland went to the police station, where he met PC Thomas and reported what had happened. Thomas and Sutherland went in search of Baptiste, whom they saw on the beach. Upon seeing the police officer, Baptiste ran, following which Thomas fired a warning shot. Baptiste stood still and was apprehended with the knife still in his possession.

Baptiste told the court that on the date in question he was hungry for blood and was on the run.

“If it had not been for those children in the car, I would have shed some blood!” he declared.

He said the residents of Sandy Bay have a negative image of him and even in the social report presented at the High Court, residents said they wished he would be locked away and the key thrown away.

Prosecutor Delroy Tittle told the court “only God alone” knows what the fate of that 10-year-old child would have been if that vehicle didn’t approach when it did.

Baptiste is currently serving a 20-year sentence for aggravated burglary. He also has previous convictions for attempted rape and rape, among other charges.

Magistrate Burnett sentenced him to one year in jail for assaulting Amron Sutherland, four years for entering the dwelling house and injuring Angella Richards, and one year for the assault on the school-child. These sentences will run concurrently.

After imposing the six additional years to Baptiste’s sentence, Burnett said, “May God have mercy on your soul.”(CJ)