He vanished five years ago, fleeing the courthouse while on bail. Following his arrest in the Netherlands on a European arrest warrant, he appeared before the Málaga Provincial Court in June, where he was already sentenced to 23 years in prison for sexually assaulting two minors, a 13-year-old girl and a 15-year-old boy, as well as producing child pornography with one of them.
According to the ruling, the incidents began in January 2016. At the time, the defendant, who was 26 years old, became friends with a gang of adolescents who hung out near his Fuengirola residence. The court stated that the defendant made contact solely with the intention of obtaining sexual gratification. The exchange occurred with “full knowledge” that their ages ranged between 13 and 16.
Once he had gained the boys’ trust, he convinced one of the girls, aged 13, to accompany him to his home on several occasions. According to the established facts section, he sexually assaulted her there up to four times. That same month, he also persuaded another 15-year-old boy from the same gang to take him to the back of a building, where he sexually assaulted him.
Furthermore, he didn’t stop there. He also created child pornography involving the first victim, recording her at home with his cell phone while she was half-naked and he pretended to be having sex. According to two witnesses who belonged to that group of minors, the defendant showed them the footage on different dates when they visited his home, and he also expressed pride in his possession.
As the resolution states, the police investigation began on April 27th, 2016, after officers received information from an anonymous citizen suggesting possible sexual offences against minors by the suspect. Based on all the evidence, the man was arrested by the National Police approximately ten days later, 48 hours after they first took a statement from the 13-year-old victim, who was represented by attorney David Armada as a private prosecutor.
The judges emphasise that, although it has not been proven that he used violence or intimidation to carry out these acts, they were necessarily committed without consent. In this regard, they point out that none of his victims had yet reached the age of 16, which is the minimum age established by law for valid consent to sexual relations.
Procedure paralyzed
The ruling by the Málaga Provincial Court came just a few days after the trial concluded on June 26th. However, this was the second hearing for these incidents, which had already begun in the Third Section in November 2019. It wasn’t until the middle of the following year, before the trial had concluded, that the defendant failed to appear at the third session, taking advantage of his provisional release.
Two years later, a European and International Arrest Warrant was issued. Police authorities in the Netherlands located the paedophile just a few months ago, following five years of completely stalled proceedings. This time, the court ordered his provisional imprisonment last May to prevent a possible new escape that would further prolong the case, for which, almost a decade after the events, a verdict has now been issued.
The defendant has been sentenced to 23 years in prison, although, according to Article 76 of the Criminal Code, the maximum sentence may not exceed 20 years, as specified in the ruling. He has also been ordered to restrain and isolate both victims—now aged 22 and 24—for a period of two decades.
He has also been banned from exercising any profession or occupation that involves indirect contact or relations with minors, whether remunerated or unpaid, for 23 years, as well as another 15 years of supervised release. He will also have to pay €60,000 to the injured party and €15,000 to the second victim for non-material damages. According to sources close to the case, the young woman continues to suffer psychological consequences that prevent her from leading the life of any other girl her age, barely leaving her home or interacting with anyone other than her family.
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