PAUL Abrams who was sentenced in 2016 to 25 years behind bars for the buggery of a 17-year-old girl, had his sentence reduced to 20 years by the Guyana Court of Appeal, on Monday.

Abrams was sentenced by Justice Jo-Ann Barlow to 25 years on the buggery charge and four years for the indecent assault committed on the teen. The sentences are running concurrently.

According to reports, on December 5, 2007, Abrams lured the young lady to a room where he proceeded to sexually assault and sodomise her.

In his application, which was filed by attorney-at-law Nigel Hughes, Abrams claims that the trial judge erred on several pertinent issues leading up to the verdict.

As it related to the severity of the sentence, Abrams claimed that the trial judge erred in law by failing to apply case law principles that promote fairness in sentencing.
Among other things, Abrams wanted the court to overturn his conviction and sentence.

The appeal was heard by Chancellor (ag) Yonette Cummings-Edwards, and Justices of Appeal Dawn Gregory and Rishi Persaud.

Justice Cummings-Edwards, while delivering the ruling, noted that the court allowed the appeal in relation to the sentence for the buggery crime, but not his conviction.

The court found that the previously imposed sentence was manifestly excessive and reduced the sentence for that crime to 20 years.

Additionally, the court affirmed the sentence and conviction for the indecent assault.