Both the prosecution and defense in the rape trial of Kevin Cooper Jr. concluded closing arguments yesterday, bringing the trial one step closer to jury deliberations.

Cooper, who is in custody, has pleaded not guilty to the charge against him.

Both Acting Director of Public Prosecutions Cordell Frazier and defense lawyer Miranda Adderley told the jurors that the only issue for them to consider was whether Cooper's accuser gave consent.

Police arrested Cooper after 5 a.m. on November 18, 2022 at the Rubis Gas Station on West Bay Street after the cashier called police for the accuser.

At the time of his arrest, Cooper was wearing nothing but a floral bed sheet.

The woman alleged that Cooper had vaginal and anal sex with her against her will in a room at the abandoned site of the former Cocktails and Dreams Nightclub on West Bay Street.

Cooper claimed that they walked there together from Arawak Cay after agreeing to have sex for $200.

By contrast, the woman claimed that a hacker was supposed to take her home.

Frazier said the gas station cashier, the arresting officer, the doctor and the investigating officer all confirmed that the rape accused was distraught, giving credence to her claim that she did not consent.

Frazier said that the alleged victim was forthright when she said that one of her friends had told a group of men at Arawak Cay that she sold her body.

The woman said that this was not true. She testified that she had a job and a boyfriend who provided for her.

Cooper alleged in his post-arrest statement that he had promised the woman $200 for sex.

He alleged that she made the rape claim after he didn't live up to their agreement.

Adderley asked the jurors, "If you take a risk to sell your body and don't get the money before it happens, is it really rape?"

On the other hand, Frazier questioned the likelihood that Cooper had $200 to pay anyone given his dire circumstances.

Cooper lived in a room on the premises of the now-closed Cocktails and Dreams with no electricity or running water.

Frazier said, "You ain't gat no phone; you ain't gat no car; you ain't gat no home really; then you ain't gat no woman. It all goes together."

She also suggested that Cooper left his room naked to ensure that his victim didn't alert authorities.

She pointed out that Cooper lied and told the cashier that the woman was his sister.

Frazier urged jurors to look at the gas station's surveillance footage.

She said that when Cooper put his arms around the woman's shoulder, she pulled away.

Justice Cheryl Grant-Thompson is expected to sum up the case today.

The post Closing arguments in rape case  appeared first on The Nassau Guardian.

The post Closing arguments in rape case  appeared first on The Nassau Guardian.

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