A 30-year old man from Essequibo was on Wednesday sentenced to 18 years imprisonment for raping a 35-year-old woman in 2018.

The convicted rapist, Francis Gonsalves, was sentenced by Justice Priya Sewnarine-Beharry at the Suddie High Court. On Tuesday, a jury had found Gonsalves guilty of engaging in sexual penetration with the victim without her consent on March 27, 2018.

According to reports on the facts of the case, in the wee hours of March 27, 2018, the victim was walking home from a party when she was attacked and raped by Gonsalves.

The State was represented by Prosecutor Tiffini Lyken, while Gonsalves was represented by attorney-at-law, Ravindra Mohabir.