Barnes denies rape charges

(CNS): Jeffrey Barnes, who was arrested following an island-wide man hunt last year, has finally been charged in connection with two serious offences. The 32-year-old man from George Town denied raping two different women after he was arraigned in the Grand Court on Friday morning. He has pleaded not guilty to rape, abduction and breaking and entering in connection with two separate incidents that occurred in George Town last year in the space of just over one week. Barnes denied breaking into the home of the first victim and raping her at knife point on 20 October and also denied abducting a 49-year old woman from a bus stop in Prospect and taking her to Admiral’s Landing, where he is accused of also raping her on 29 October.

Barnes was remanded in custody until his next hearing and no trial date has yet been set. His attorney is seeking to have the two incidents dealt with separately as she claims there is no connection at all between the two crimes her client is accused of committing.

Barnes was arrested in November last year at an apartment in Ocean Club after the police launched a full scale man hunt in the wake of three different reports of sexual assaults in which he was believed to be the perpetrator.