Leuven man sentenced to forty months for assaulting woman on street
A man from Leuven has been sentenced to forty months imprisonment with probation suspended following a violent assault on a woman in the city centre. The victim managed to escape by fighting back.
Leuven man sentenced to forty months for assaulting woman on street
A man from Leuven has been sentenced by the district court to forty months imprisonment with a suspended sentence. He had assaulted a woman in the centre of the city early in the morning. The prosecution had sought a four-year prison term.
The incident took place at six o'clock in the morning. The victim was walking alone through the city after going out. The defendant, L.R., was also making his way home after a night out. He approached the woman on the street and immediately behaved aggressively.
According to the prosecutor, CCTV footage showed "horrifying" images. The man squeezed her buttock, tried to kiss her, pulled her hair and struck her face multiple times. The prosecutor described it as "predatory behaviour". The victim's lawyer stated that the man had already undone his trousers and that the intention to rape was clear.
The victim was able to escape, however, by fighting back. She kicked him, bit him on the lip, scratched and stamped on him, enabling her to get away. The man subsequently got into a taxi to go home, but was quickly located.
During his interrogation and later at trial, L.R. claimed he could not remember anything due to excessive alcohol consumption. The judge found him guilty of assault and imposed several conditions alongside the prison sentence: treatment for his problems, five years disqualification from rights, a contact ban with the victim, a ban on alcohol and compensation of 7,888 euros.
Source: Het Nieuwsblad
Source: Nieuwsblad