The court of appeal on Wednesday increased a prison sentence to four years in a long-running case of child sexual abuse, stressing that delays in reporting such crimes must not weaken the seriousness with which they are handled.

The decision came after the attorney-general appealed against what prosecutors described as a “clearly insufficient” sentence imposed by a criminal court. The offences took place in 2004 and 2005. The victim reported the incident to police in 2021, almost 17 years later.

According to a statement from the law office, the victim was a minor at the time and only filed a report after becoming an adult and receiving psychological support. The law office said the ruling serves as a reminder that the time between an offence and a complaint should not discourage victims from coming forward.

In its judgement, the court of appeal stated that the delay in reporting and the passage of years before the case reached court “does not lead to any reduction in the level of strictness with which such cases must be handled”. The judges added that the time that passed between the complaint and sentencing should not influence the nature or length of the punishment.

The court stressed that sentences in these cases must remain “strict and deterrent”, describing such offences as serious crimes that attack moral integrity and cause lasting harm to the victim’s personality.

The accused had originally received concurrent sentences of two years and six months for four sexual offences. He appealed, arguing the punishment was excessive. The court of appeal dismissed his appeal as unfounded.

Following the attorney general’s appeal, the sentence was replaced with a four-year prison term. The case for the attorney-general was handled by state lawyer Marina Masoura.