Date rape alarm

The police have revealed that an alarming number of women are being raped or robbed on their first date with men they meet on social media platforms; however, the true extent of the problem remains unknown because some women are too fearful or embarrassed to make a formal complaint.

“This is definitely a cause for concern right now. Women being assaulted by men they meet on the Internet is not new, but I think since COVID, with the whole lockdown and everything, and so many activities moving online, the crime escalated. But even before COVID, there was a concern with reports of several incidents,” one senior police officer told The Sunday Gleaner last week.

“Loneliness increased, and so did persons’ need for companionship, which led to them reaching out and taking chances with persons they met or created relationships with online, not knowing they are communicating with predators.”

The cop, who specialises in sex crimes, said, “We get the stories, we hear about them and we are hearing more and more stories, but women are afraid and ashamed to formally complain. We are encouraging women to come forward, even as we investigate what we know and work to curtail the problem.

“In the meantime, we are begging women to be very careful and more vigilant in giving out personal information about themselves and meeting up with men they know very little about,” he added.

In one instance, a 24-year-old woman, who lives in the Kingston 11 area, detailed the horrific experience she endured when she decided last October to meet a man who she had been dating online for six months.

“We arranged to meet on the downtown Kingston waterfront. He was excited to see me but after talking for about 15 minutes, he decided that I should accompany him to meet his mother in Vineyard Town. I went with him in a taxi and he paid the fare,” she shared with The Sunday Gleaner last week.

“When I reached the house, he invited me inside and began calling his mother, but there was no response from her. The next thing he did was to put a knife at my neck and raped me. I was so shocked that I could only cry. He then called a taxi driver and paid him the fare to take me downtown.”

She continued, “I was so ashamed that until now, my sister is the only person that I confided in. I just did not have the courage to report the incident to the police. I cannot get the situation out of my mind, no matter how much I try. I am now getting counselling and my sister is very supportive.”

MOTIVES UNKNOWN

Sharon Milwood-Moore, senior deputy director of public prosecutions, is recommending that persons exercise caution and due diligence in forming associations through social media.

“The modern era of technology heralds instant gratification without any limits to the ‘friends’ that can be made. However, we must be ever mindful that the person on the other side of the screen is a complete stranger, whose true motives may be unknown,” she told The Sunday Gleaner.

“Persons too often expose themselves to sexual violation and other unthinkable acts of violence. The thrills that await from the mere tap of a key must, therefore, be balanced against the risks to which we make ourselves vulnerable.

“The freedom to use various platforms must be balanced by a keen sense of the individual responsibility to secure ourselves as best as possible,” the senior prosecutor, who is the head of the Human Rights, Human Trafficking, Sexual Offences and Intellectual Property Unit at her office, further stated.

MUST BE PUNISHED

A university student who was raped and badly beaten by a man she met on Facebook in December 2014 decided that he must be punished for the crime. The perpetrator is now serving time for the offence.

She knew him only as “Jefferton”.

After he was arrested, it was revealed that his real name was Levi Levy.

According to the details contained in court documents, they agreed to meet for the first time in Half-Way Tree, St Andrew, on January 3, 2015, between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. They had planned to go to Pulse in New Kingston, but Levy drove her to a guest house in the Cross Roads area.

She questioned him about the change of venue and he told her it was a regular spot for him that had a “chill place” like a bar, where they could have a drink. He went inside and spoke to two ladies with whom he seemed familiar, and based on that, she left the car and went inside with him.

When she noticed that there was no bar, she questioned him about it, but he said that he had paid his money already and invited her into a room. He assured her that he was not going to do her any harm, and that she should not be afraid, as he was just going to lie down for a while because he was tired.

Sometime after, he began making sexual advances towards her and then pushed her on to the bed and raped her. He then forced her to have oral sex and when she refused, he slapped her in the face several times. He pushed his penis into her mouth and she said she bit it. He slapped her repeatedly in her face until it began to bleed, she recounted.

Levy took her back to Half-Way Tree about 11:30 p.m. and she took a taxi home. She sent messages to him on Facebook, expressing disbelief at what he did and then ‘unfriended’ him. He texted her, insisting that she add him back as a friend on the platform, telling her that if she refused, he was going to release a video of her performing oral sex on him.

A few days later, she reported the matter to the police.

Levy continued sending messages to her and on the instructions of the police, she arranged to meet him at 8:40 p.m. on January 9, 2015 in the St Andrew capital. Levy turned up and the police arrested him.

The complainant admitted at the trial in February 2018 that some of the conversations they had on Facebook were of a sexual nature. She denied that she had agreed to have sex with Levy in exchange for money; however, she admitted that she had discussed with him her need for $50,000 to assist with funding her studies.

She also admitted that she had not planned on reporting the incident, but after speaking to her sister and other persons, she made the report to the police.

BE EXTRA CAREFUL

In his defence, Levy said that it was consensual sex but the complainant became upset when he told her he would give her the $50,000 the next time he saw her.

A jury convicted Levy of rape and grievous sexual assault and he appealed his convictions and sentences.

The Court of Appeal found that there was no miscarriage of justice based on the judge’s summation to the jury.

Levy was sentenced to 18 years’ imprisonment on both counts, and for the offence of rape, he was ordered to serve 12 years before he is eligible for parole. The court said the judge made no stipulation in relation to the other offence and ordered that Levy should serve 12 years for that offence before he was eligible for parole. The sentences were to run concurrently, commencing on March 20, 2018, the court ruled.

In another case that went before the courts, an 18-year-old woman – who visited Kingston in April 2016 in response to an advertisement on Facebook for a promotional dancer – was shepherded into a life of prostitution.

Devon Scott, 47, a music promoter of a Waterloo Avenue address in St Andrew, who was responsible for the ordeal, is now serving nine years in prison.

Milwood-Moore and Syleen Ogilvie prosecuted the case. Scott was convicted in July 2020 of human trafficking and sentenced to nine years, and convicted of living off the earnings of prostitution and sentenced to one year. The sentences are to run concurrently.

After Scott was sentenced, Milwood-Moore had made a plea for persons to be extra careful because “there are predators out there actively scouting and luring victims”.

editorial@gleanerjm.com

TIPS TO MEET FACE-TO-FACE WITH SOMEONE YOU MET ONLINE

Follow your gut

Cancel the meet if your instincts are sending off alarm bells. Never ignore that gut feeling in the pit of your stomach.

Meet in a public place

Make arrangements to meet somewhere where there are other people around, and go on a date at a public place after you meet up.

Know their face

Before agreeing to meet, look over their many social media pages and make sure they show up with the same face in multiple places. Also, ask them to send a selfie at a place or with something they love.

Find your own way

Use your own transportation to find your way to the agreed public spot. Do not get into their vehicle under any circumstance.

Tell a friend

Always make it a habit to tell someone where you’re going and who you are meeting, and check in often with that person.

Bring a friend

It is never a bad idea to bring a friend along or to arrange a group meet up with a couple of like-minded friends.

Be ready to leave

Plan ahead, and have an excuse to leave early. If at any point you feel unsafe or uncomfortable with your new friend, you need to be in a position to safely end the meet and leave.