Man Convicted of Aggravated Assault

Austin DeCosta

Austin DeCosta was found guilty of aggravated assault upon a woman. The forty-three-year-old resident of Caye Caulker appeared in court today to answer to the charge for an incident that happened back in September 2016. He was found guilty and sentenced to two years in prison. The victim indicated that she was afraid of testifying before her attacker, but later went on to say that DeCosta assaulted her when she visited a house where there was a domestic dispute; DeCosta later turned on her and pulled out a knife with which he attempted to stab her. Fortunately, the woman was able to escape unharmed and called the police. The accused told the court that he was unable to recall what happened on the night in question because he was under heavy influence of alcohol, but he was certain that he would never attack someone in that manner. During the trial, the victim also told the court that she was raped twice by DeCosta when she was eighteen. That alleged rape produced two children – an admission that was never before reported to the police, so DeCosta wasn’t charged with rape.