‘Uncle Wallie’ slapped with 16 years jail sentence for raping girl, 16

Oswald Earl Bedlow, known as ‘Uncle Wallie’

Oswald Earl Bedlow, known as ‘Uncle Wallie,’ has been sentenced to 16 years in prison for the rape of a girl two weeks after her sixteenth birthday.

Justice Sandil Kissoon handed down the sentence in the High Court, where Bedlow was reprimanded for his lack of remorse and the premeditated nature of his crime.

The 35-year-old Bedlow, a married man with two children, was found guilty of engaging in sexual penetration with the complainant without her consent. At the time of the incident on December 22, 2022, in Demerara, the girl was 16, and Bedlow was 34.

A 12-member jury reached a guilty verdict after nearly two hours of deliberation last month. In addition to the prison sentence, Justice Kissoon ordered that Bedlow participates in vocational training programmes and sex offender counselling sessions throughout his incarceration to aid in his rehabilitation.

Attorney-at-Law Ronald Bostwick represented Bedlow, while Counsel Marisa Edwards appeared for the State.