Eight years jail term for rapist radiographer

A radiographer working at Vunisea Hospital in Kadavu in 2023 has been jailed for eight years and 11 months after being found guilty of rape.

The incident occurred on October 23, 2023, when the radiographer digitally raped the victim during a scan to determine whether she was pregnant.

The court heard that the complainant had previously been sexually assaulted following an abduction and was referred for a pregnancy scan by a doctor.

The accused was convicted and sentenced last month by High Court Judge Justice Thushara Rajasinghe in Suva.

In his ruling, Justice Rajasinghe said the sentence was grounded in the principle of deterrence, particularly given the humiliating and distressing nature of the offence.

The court considered the Victim Impact Statement, which outlined the emotional and psychological harm suffered by the victim, including the destruction of her self-confidence.

“Instead of assisting her in properly carrying out the requested medical procedure, you exploited the opportunity to satisfy your disgraceful sexual desire by sexually assaulting her,” Justice Rajasinghe said.

“By committing this offence, you not only breached the trust of the complainant, who came to you for a medical procedure, but also the health service that placed trust in you by assigning you such a valuable and important task as a radiographer.”

The court said the accused’s mitigating factors carried little weight compared with the impact of the crime on the victim and the health service.

The accused will be eligible to apply for parole after serving five years and 11 months of the sentence.