Cabaero: Court victory blunted as foreigner at large

IT WOULD have been a pivotal victory in the fight against sexual abuse and trafficking of children in Cebu.

But the impact of that victory - a court decision that convicted an American national arrested six years ago while inside a motel with a minor – got blunted because the foreigner is at large.

How the case ended, with the foreigner no longer to be found and thus unable to serve his sentence, would not have the impact of deterring others from committing the same offense.

American national Wayne Melbourne Littlefield was found guilty Friday of child abuse, which is punishable by Republic Act 7610 (Anti-Child Abuse Law), and use of a trafficked person under RA 9208 (Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003), a SunStar Cebu report said. The decision by Regional Trial Court Judge Jose Nathaniel Andal of Branch 24 said the 13-year-old girl found with Littlefield when he was arrested was “a child exploited in prostitution.” Littlefield was sentenced to 12 to 16 years in jail and ordered to pay a fine of P50,000 to the victim.

Arrested with Littlefield were Australian national Norman Johnson Henry and the girl’s alleged pimp, Michelle Ilayan. The report said Littlefield and Henry posted bail prior to their arraignment, while Ilayan pleaded guilty to a lesser offense of attempted trafficking in persons in 2015 and is serving a 15-year sentence.

The two foreigners are out on bail and only the local resident not likely to afford the bond or a planet ticket to a destination abroad is the one serving sentence.

When Littlefield posted bail, he paid an amount of money to assure the court that he would appear during trial. News reports on his conviction did not mention any reason why he wasn’t in court for the trial and decision, or his whereabouts. He is at large and, since his arrest happened six years ago, he is likely to be already out of the country.

Court decisions such as the one handed down by Andal are appreciated, especially by groups for the protection of women and children such as the International Justice Mission, but the flight of foreigner-convicts is frustrating because it renders the conviction of child abusers and traffickers ineffective in discouraging others.

Getting in trouble in a foreign land is a situation a visitor would try hard to avoid because the foreign national is uncertain of local laws and judicial procedures. They could get stuck in prison for years in a country that does not recognize due process or human rights. They could be imprisoned without charges or without the benefit of a lawyer.

In the Philippines, due process is observed and human rights are upheld, with some exceptions. When a foreign national mocks our judiciary and escapes prosecution by fleeing, it makes you wonder if this foreigner was even afraid of getting caught and tried in court.

Whatever loopholes that made Littlefield and other foreigner-convicts unafraid of prosecution and succeed in their escape should be plugged.

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