Arguing that the presiding judge did not live up to a plea bargain, Leon Jordan — the serial rapist who was sentenced three weeks ago for raping two girls and a woman — is now contesting the severity of the sentence with the Court of Appeal.
The Sexual Offences Court in Demerara accepted guilty pleas from Jordan, 22, in relation to the crimes. He admitted that he raped the two girls, ages seven and 14, and a 24-year-old woman at knifepoint in isolated areas.
Although Jordan was not tried by a jury, he is arguing that he was given an unfair trial. Further, he is also arguing that given his guilty pleas, Justice Brassington Reynolds did not live up to the plea bargain.
In relation to the seven-year-old girl, Jordan rode up to her on a bicycle at her school on February 2, 2012. He told her that her mother had sent him to buy chicken.
Jordan promised to take the little girl home afterwards. Instead, he grabbed her hands and forced her on to his bicycle while whispering in her ear, “If you scream I will juk you with a knife.” Jordan then took the seven-year-old into a bushy area where he pulled down her tights and underwear and forcibly had sex with her while placing a knife to her neck.
The court heard that after the act, Jordan left the girl under a bus shed. Somehow, the girl made her way home and related what had transpired to her parents. At the time, she was bleeding profusely.
In the second instance, the 14-year-old girl was making her way home on January 13, 2013, when Jordan rode up to her on a bicycle and asked her something. Armed with an ice pick, Jordan forced the teenager onto his bicycle and took her to an isolated area where he pulled off her clothes and raped her.
She was bleeding profusely from her vagina. Jordan then made sure that the area was clear before he allowed the young girl to leave. A medical examination revealed that the teenager’s hymen was ruptured.
Meanwhile, Jordan accosted the 24-year-old on October 25, 2016, as she was making her way home to tend to her children. He dragged her into a bushy area and forced himself onto her. A struggle ensued, during which Jordan bit off one of the woman’s eyelids and then spat it onto the ground.
He then raped her while she continually begged him to let her go. She was hospitalised for five days and had to undergo several rounds of corrective surgery to save her eyesight.
During sentencing proceedings, the victims related how they felt to the court; Jordan sat emotionless in the witness box, leaving Justice Reynolds to wonder if he was human.
The Judge said to Jordan, “But I don’t know if you have any feelings. You are less of a human being which you ought to be.”
The probation officer described Jordan as “selfish and barbaric” while noting that he has expressed no remorse for his actions.
Jordan was previously charged and freed for rape, kidnapping, and robbery. The Judge ordered that Jordan undergo psychiatric evaluations during his time in incarceration.
Prosecutors Abigail Gibbs and Seeta Bishundial appeared for the State, while lawyer Maxwell McKay represented Jordan.
