Miner Trevor Paul was yesterday sentenced to an 18-month-long prison term after he was found guilty of stabbing his girlfriend’s former partner.
Magistrate Judy Latchman imposed the sentence at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court yesterday, where Paul was read a charge of unlawfully assaulting and maliciously wounding Travis Eastman.
It was alleged that on November 12, 2012, at Light and Church streets, Georgetown, Paul wounded Eastman.
Paul, who was unrepresented by an attorney, pleaded not guilty to the charge and opted for the matter to be tried summarily.
Police Prosecutor Vishnu Hunt told the court that Paul and Eastman are known to each other as Paul is in a relationship with the Eastman’s ex-girlfriend.
Hunt said on the day of the attack, Eastman went to the woman’s home and asked her for a bag and she told him she did not have any bag. He added that it was then Paul cuffed Eastman and stabbed him in the left side of his back.
Paul was subsequently arrested while Eastman was taken to the Georgetown Hospital for medical attention.
But Paul, when given a chance to speak, told the court that he was preparing to leave his girlfriend’s home when Eastman knocked on the door.
He said that his girlfriend answered the door and Eastman claimed he came to see the children.
Paul said he was lying, alleging that Eastman would usually harass her for sex.
The man said that his girlfriend then closed the door and Eastman started to kick it down.
As a result, Paul said that he went to attend to Eastman, who then took a knife out of a bag that he had and attacked him.
He fought back, he said, and Eastman got stabbed in the process, while he sustained a cut on his hand.
Eastman denied Paul’s account, saying that he did not kick down the door. He maintained that he went to collect a bag, which he had asked the woman for. However, the woman told him that she did not have any bag to give to him, he said, adding that
Paul then went outside and dealt a cuff to his nose and he started to bleed. He said that Paul then stabbed him to the left side of his back.
Eastman told the court that he was bleeding and he asked Paul’s girlfriend to call an ambulance, but Paul blocked the woman’s movement and prevented her from contacting the ambulance. He said he heard him tell the woman: “Leh he dead.”
He said he called out to neighbours but no one came to his assistance.
As a result, he was left to bleed for a few minutes until he finally decided to take a chance and go to the hospital himself.
Magistrate Latchman, after listening to submissions, sentenced Paul to 18 months imprisonment.
Paul, after hearing his fate, asked the magistrate for a lesser sentence, but his request was denied.
When the police attempted to handcuff him to take him out of the courtroom, he began to cry and resist them.
