Charleroi man in his thirties charged with sexual assaults on disabled residents
A man already convicted to five years for the rape of an elderly person is appearing again before Charleroi tribunal, this time for indecent touching of vulnerable adults housed in a specialised institution.
Charleroi man in his thirties charged with sexual assaults on disabled residents
A man in his thirties, already sentenced to a heavy prison term for sexual violence, is facing new proceedings before Charleroi tribunal. In May 2025, the court imposed five years' imprisonment on him for having raped and beaten a woman over eighty years old. During the summer of 2024, he had visited this elderly person on two occasions, with a gap of fifteen days between each visit, to commit indecent touching. He had justified his violence by a desire to "avenge the beatings he had suffered during his first visit".
However, the facts motivating this new appearance are prior to that conviction. On 9 May, one month before the events leading to his first sentence, the suspect had broken into a Guelph centre accommodating adults with disabilities. His pretext: "to steal goods". Once inside, he entered a resident's room and kissed her using his tongue.
As he was leaving this room, a night-shift supervisor intercepted him and ordered him to leave. He chose to ignore this order and rushed into another room to rape a second resident. It was thanks to DNA traces found on this latter victim that investigators were able to trace him.
At Tuesday's hearing, the defendant did not deny the facts he was accused of. His defence counsel, Me Isabelle Vander Eyden, indicated to the judges that her client "felt shame" when making his statements, whilst admitting that he suffered from a "lack of sex". The person in question also acknowledged experiencing a particular attraction to elderly people, according to La Dernière Heure.
The deputy prosecutor, Balant, sought a conviction to seven years' detention. He emphasised the defendant's repeated criminal record for offences of the same nature. In his defence, Me Vander Eyden pleaded for a suspended probationary sentence, arguing that therapeutic intervention would be more appropriate for treating his sexual disorders.
The tribunal will shortly deliver its decision in this case, reports La Dernière Heure.
Source: DHnet