Rapist of minor has sentence increased by Supreme court

Upholding an appeal from the attorney-general, the supreme court on Thursday added four years to the jail term of a man found guilty of raping and sexually abusing a minor.

The attorney-general’s office had argued that the nine-year jail term handed down by the Nicosia criminal court in 2020 was inadequate.

The supreme court agreed and raised the sentence to 13 years, the attorney-general’s office said in a statement on Thursday.

In its decision, the supreme court said that the criminal court had been right to note that courts must hand down strict sentences that contain an element of deterrent for the crimes of raping and sexually abusing a child, especially when these are committed against young, defenceless individuals.

Sexual crimes, by their very nature, crush human dignity, degrading the humanity of the victim and often affecting their lives irreparably, it added.

The defendant had also appealed against his conviction and against the sentence, describing it as excessive. His appeal was rejected by the supreme court in its totality.

The case on behalf of the attorney general’s office was handled by lawyer for the Republic, Maria Masoura.