Five years' imprisonment, three in custody, for a Charleroi man convicted of serial sexual assault
A man in his sixties was tried in Charleroi for sexually assaulting two women at a hotel in Gosselies. He used a recurring method: approaching vulnerable young women, providing them with accommodation, then abusing them after intoxicating them.
Five years' imprisonment, three in custody, for a Charleroi man convicted of serial sexual assault
The Charleroi courts have imposed a sentence of five years' imprisonment on a man in his sixties convicted of sexual violence against two victims. Three years must be served in custody, with the remainder subject to five years' probation. The information was disclosed by the newspaper La DH.
The incidents date back to 8 April 2024, when a police team was dispatched to the Class'Eco, a hotel located in Gosselies. Officers found a middle-aged man sweating profusely and attempting to leave the car park quickly. An adolescent girl, aged over sixteen, was also present at the scene. She was crying, appeared distressed and was visibly intoxicated.
The day after the police intervention, this first victim was interviewed by investigators. She explained that she had met the accused the previous day, near Charleroi-Central railway station. He had presented himself as someone willing to help her. He invited her to a restaurant and then took her to the hotel. Once there, he began to touch her in a sexual manner. Despite her attempts to push him away, he persisted. The young woman states that she was forced to engage in full sexual intercourse as well as oral acts, after the man had given her alcohol to weaken her resistance.
An examination of the accused's mobile phone revealed photographs and video footage of another woman, naked and unconscious, being subjected to sexual touching. This second victim, identified and interviewed on 9 April 2024, told police that the man wanted a romantic relationship which she refused. According to her account, several sexual encounters took place without her consent while she was under the influence of alcohol. Other encounters are said to have been obtained through veiled threats: the accused promised her the acquisition of a car or a home. She only realised she had been exploited when she found herself drunk, after her attacker had assured her otherwise.
Nine days after this interview, this second victim was found dead. Beside her lay a blister pack of tablets and a copy of her statement to the police.
During the trial, the accused maintained his role as a rescuer. He claimed he had only wanted to assist the two young women by covering their meal and accommodation expenses. Regarding the recorded footage, he stated he had made it in order to raise awareness in the victim, to show her her excessive behaviour when drunk. He did, however, acknowledge that she was unconscious at the time the footage was recorded.
The prosecution categorically rejected this version. For the public prosecutor, this was in no way disinterested assistance, but rather a repetitive criminal pattern: identifying women in vulnerable situations, housing them in the same establishment, intoxicating them, and then sexually assaulting them. The prosecutor had requested five years' imprisonment. The court granted this request in full.
Source: DHnet