Morocco: Court adds decades in jail terms of rapists of minor girl

A court in Morocco on Friday (April 14) significantly increased jail sentence of three men convicted of 'indecent assault' for raping an 11-year-old girl repeatedly. One man was handed jail sentence of 20 years while the other two were handed 1o-year sentences. A lower court had handed one-and-a-half year and two-year sentences to the rapists. The case had sparked public outrage.

The appeals court ordered the three men to pay damages totalling 140,000 dirhams (nearly $14,000) instead of the 50,000 dirhams ordered by the lower court.

"We are satisfied with the decision which delivered justice to the victim," lawyer Abdelfattah Zahrach told AFP after the marathon hearing.

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"That said, we do not understand why two of the accused have been only sentenced to 10 years," he said, adding that he was considering a further appeal to the Court of Cassation "after consulting the child's family".

The court heard testimonies from the victim and a witness in private after a request from the prosecution.

The public gallery was packed for Thursday's hearing, which ran on into the early hours of Friday.

The victim, looking frail and silent, was accompanied by her grandmother and father.

The defendants faced the same charges as in the original trial -- "misappropriation of a minor" and "indecent assault on a minor with violence".

The prosecution requested that "rape" be added to the charges, a request rejected by the judge.

The accused hung their heads in the dock as the evidence was presented.

One of the men was confronted with a DNA test proving that he is the father of a now 13-month-old child born to the girl.

(With inputs from agencies)

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