Queen NwabuezeA Rikers transgender inmate identified as, Ramel Blount, who raped a female prisoner while in the women’s section of the jail has been sentenced to seven years imprisonment for the act.
Reportedly, Blount received a seven-year prison sentence with an additional eight years of post-release supervision. An order of protection was issued, and Blount must also register as a sex offender.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelAccording to Bronx District Attorney, Darcel Clark in a statement: “Sexual violence against anyone is unacceptable.”
The Rikers officials said, the 33 year old who goes by the name Diamond Blount, pleaded guilty to rape April 7 in an apparent plea deal.
The investigators narrated that Blount, who was housed in the female section of the facility did approach a 33-year-old female inmate in the bathroom at the Rose M. Singer center Feb. 8, 2021, after the victim had just finished having her bath.
The story said that Blount held the victim down by the back of her neck and raped her, investigators said. The victim reported the incident to jail officials and a rape kit was administered, which matched Blount’s DNA in the New York State Registry.
Meanwhile, reports say, violence has continued to plague the notorious Rikers facility. Federal prosecutors have threatened to request that the Department of Correction be taken over by an independent body if the agency doesn’t improve conditions at the city-run jail.
Last year, 16 people died in DOC custody — more than in 2019 and 2020 combined and the most fatalities since 2016. The DOC has reported three deaths so far this year.
Last week, Mayor Eric Adams begged New Yorkers to give him a “chance” to fix the situation at the 10-facility jail complex, which is home to more than 5,000 inmates.
DOC Commissioner, Louis Molina promised to bring safety and order back to Rikers after he was appointed by Adams, but jailhouse sources told journalists that chaos and violence was still the order of the day.
Insider reports have it that more than 1,000 weapons have been recovered since Molina has ramped up search operations again at the start of his tenure.
Rikers Island is a 413.17-acre island in the East River between Queens and the Bronx that contains New York City’s main jail complex. Named after Abraham Rycken, who took possession of the island in 1664, the island was originally under 100 acres in size, but has since grown to more than 400 acres.
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