granddaughter.

And yesterday, Sgt. Clark Minors, the officer in charge of Community and Juvenile services, told the Supreme Court the man had already served a six-month prison term for sexually exploiting one of his other grand-daughters.

Before sentencing the Pembroke parish man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, Chief Justice Austin Ward said: "At the defendant's age and in his position, he should have been a guiding light rather than a corrupting force.'' The grandfather pleaded guilty to the charge of incest earlier this year, but Mr. Ward had postponed sentencing, pending a social inquiry report.

The incestuous act with his 16-year-old granddaughter occurred between June 1 and September 30, 1993 in her grandfather's bedroom.

Sgt. Minors told the court the sexual exploitation of the first grand-daughter took place between May 1 and July 31, 1993.

In 1994, the man was given a $500 fine and a suspended six-month prison sentence which was later activated on appeal.

The time lag between the two trials was believed to have occurred because the first granddaughter spoke of her ordeal sooner.

Crown Counsel Charlene Scott yesterday said the man stopped his granddaughter from leaving his room after she had delivered a message to him during the summer of 1993.

He forced the girl onto his lap and pulled off her underpants as she kicked and struggled to free herself.

He then pushed her onto the bed and attempted sexual penetration.

Ms Scott said he was unable to fully enter the girl but his actions left her vagina bloody and swollen.

Later the same day, the girl told her younger brother of the incident.

However, her brother did not believe her story until the next day when he witnessed his grandfather grab her from behind, and expose himself.

The man was arrested some two years after the incident. "It seems like he doesn't appreciate what has happened,'' Ms Scott said of the 78-year-old.

"He seems to think that somehow the young lady was a willing partner.'' But defence lawyer Michael Telemaque said the man -- who offered a brief apology -- had pleaded guilty to avoid putting his "wife and family through more heartache''. "He has already suffered a great deal,'' said Mr.

Telemaque. "If you look at the social inquiry report, none of his seven children speak to him.''