A Spanish court acquitted a 20-year-old Roma man accused of raping a 12-year-old girl who then became pregnant with twins, because the judge ruled that the “relationship” between him and his victim was “part of the reality of their culture,” he says. daily Mail .
The man was arrested after the doctor discovered that the girl was pregnant. The suspect said he did not know her age.
During the trial, the prosecution requested an 11-year prison sentence, but the Ciudad Real court decided to take into account the social and cultural context of the Roma community, to which the accused and his victim belonged, in order to limit the sentence to the point of acquitting the 20-year-old.
The judge confirms that the relationship “was always consensual and respected the foundations of the romantic relationship in Roma culture,” adding that the 20-year-old defendant and the 12-year-old girl were “close in age and maturity.”
In Spain, the legal age for consent is 16 years, which did not prevent the judge from granting a legal exception to the accused.
The latter also stated that the girl looks like she is 15 years old physically and psychologically.
