A guilty verdict was rendered Saturday for only one of three men accused of raping a woman in Granby in June 2020.
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James Suarez-Cabrera was found guilty of sexual assault. Naeem Rasouli and Nilson Lozano-Lozada were acquitted across the board.
Two counts of sexual assault and participation in the offense with another person were against these individuals aged 35 to 42, for events that occurred at the end of a drunken evening in June 2020.
James Suarez-Cabrera, seen on November 7 at the Granby courthouse, at the start of the trial which involved two other defendants for an alleged gang rape that occurred in June 2020.
MAXIME DELAND/AGENCE QMI
The deliberations of the jury, composed at the end of the proceedings of eight men and four women, began on Wednesday.
In order to guide their thinking, they, among other things, questioned judge Gaétan Dumas on the correlation between alcohol consumption and consent.
“It is up to you to decide whether the complainant had the capacity to consent, and, if she had it, you must ask yourself whether she actually consented,” the magistrate mentioned.
On Friday, the jurors indicated they were deadlocked.
“You don’t have to feel rushed to reach a verdict. Everyone is very aware that you have heard a long piece of evidence,” argued Judge Dumas.
Several witnesses
Around ten witnesses took the stand during the trial, which lasted throughout the month of November at the Granby courthouse.
Nilson Lozano-Lozada was acquitted. We see him here at the beginning of November, at the Granby courthouse.
PHOTO AGENCY QMI, MAXIME DELAND
Among them was the alleged victim, now 32 years old.
She reported that her condition quickly deteriorated after just a few drinks at a friend’s party.
The thirty-year-old said she found herself in a vehicle, before regaining consciousness at Naeem Rasouli’s house.
Naeem Rasouli was acquitted. We see him here at the beginning of November, at the Granby courthouse.
PHOTO AGENCY QMI, MAXIME DELAND
It was alleged that the three accused took advantage of the woman whose identity is protected by the court on a sofa bed in the basement.
Disturbed
The victim, who said she did not know where she was at the time of the incident, believes she was drugged without her knowledge that evening, having a good tolerance to alcohol at the time.
The defense, for its part, suggested that the complainant had actively participated in sexual acts and highlighted several “gray areas” in its version of events.
James Suarez-Cabrera for his part would have had a complete relationship with the young woman, who was then “disturbed”.
“He finished what he had to do, and he left,” she said during her testimony.
“Of course, normally, I would never have accepted. To this day, I don’t even understand what happened,” said the victim.
Oral arguments on the sentence that will be imposed on Suarez-Cabrera will take place on December 8. The Crown intends to ask for a prison sentence. Furthermore, she does not rule out the possibility of appealing the acquittal verdicts rendered on Saturday.
Mare Valérie Simard-Croteau and Karyne Goulet represent the public prosecutor in this case. Mare Anne Tétreault, Julie Lepage and Robert Jodoin defended the accused.