The Public Prosecution Service on Thursday demanded a three-year prison sentence against the Italian Sirio S., who is suspected of raping a woman last King’s Day in Amsterdam. Images of the incident circulated on social media in the days after King’s Day. S. pleaded guilty in court on Thursday.
The female rape victim, a 35-year-old woman of Irish nationality, reported the rape to police shortly after the incident. The two are said to be known to each other. The suspect indicated in court that he remembered little about the incident, the victim said he could remember nothing.
“The suspect has only been concerned with himself and his own pleasure and not at all with the victim,” the public prosecutor said in court. According to the Public Prosecution Service, the sentence is appropriate because the rape took place on the street and images of it have been distributed. The suspect also continued even though bystanders tried to stop him for months.
The images that circulated on social media caused a stir. Amsterdam mayor Femke Halsema, among others, responded to the rape and the distribution of the images. “Making and distributing these types of images is not only punishable, but also deeply humiliating and hurtful,” Halsema said in April.
NEW: Give this item as a gift
As an NRC subscriber you can subscribe every month 10 articles give as a gift to someone without an NRC subscription. The recipient can read the article directly, without a paywall.