Hunte guilty of raping schoolgirl in classroom

It took a jury less than 45 minutes to find Jamel Lorenzo Hunte guilty of raping a female student at a secondary school in 2023.

Hunte, of Waterman Road, Green Hill, St Michael, was charged with having sexual intercourse with a girl under the age of 14 on June 15, 2023. The complainant was 12 years old at the time.

Following Justice Anthony Blackman’s summation of the two-week trial in the No.3A Supreme Court on Thursday afternoon, the nine-member jury left to deliberate at 3:44 p.m. and returned at 4:30 p.m. with the verdict.

Principal State Counsel Rudolph Burnett, State Counsel Anastacia McMeo-Boyce, and State Counsel Treann Knight prosecuted the matter while Hunte was represented by defence attorney Ricardo Harrison.

Justice Blackman remanded Hunte to Dodds Prison pending sentencing and adjourned the matter until July 17.

During the case, the complainant testified that while at school, she went to use the bathroom and was with other students when they were approached by a man who claimed to be a former student.

When she walked off alone and turned a corner, she was grabbed and lost consciousness. The student said she woke up on a table in a classroom, and the man she had seen previously was having sex with her.

In his unsworn statement, Hunte said he went to the school to speak to the principal. After he found out that the school head was in a meeting, he walked around the compound and spoke to several students before leaving the premises.

Hunte insisted that he did not rape anyone and was only guilty of trespassing, because he had not asked for permission to walk around the school.