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Date Published: 20/05/2022

ARCHIVED - 69-year-old who tied up his girlfriend before beating and raping her in Murcia avoids jail

ARCHIVED ARTICLE

He was given a two-year sentence suspended for five years for the violent attack in Lorca

<span style='color:#780948'>ARCHIVED</span> - 69-year-old who tied up his girlfriend before beating and raping her in Murcia avoids jail

A 69-year-old man has avoided an immediate prison sentence after admitting tying up his girlfriend's hands and feet with a hairdryer cable and beating and raping her at their home in Lorca, Murcia.

Originally from Jaén in Andalusia, the pensioner carried out the brutal attack four years ago, and after pleading guilty at the Provincial Court of Murcia was given just a two-year prison sentence, suspended for five years.

The court heard that at around 11am one morning in August 2018, the 69-year-old "adopted an aggressive behaviour" and began slapping his girlfriend several times before grabbing her forcefully, violating her and "threatening to kill her if she didn't agree to his continued sexual demands".

"Due to the well-founded fear of suffering greater physical harm generated by the context in which she was immersed", the victim performed a sex act on her abuser, and after the attack "the man went to bed to sleep".

Around 3am the following morning, the convicted man "woke up and left the house to return between 7am and 8am at which time he woke the woman and shouted: "Get up, my friend is coming to take you to his house!", and began to beat her.

A court report added that, to prevent her from escaping, "he grabbed her and placed her on the floor, positioning himself on her body, and being helpless, he tied her by the hands and feet using the hair dryer cable". She remained tied up until she was finally freed by Guardia Civil officers.

The attacker "acknowledged the facts" and has paid 400 euros compensation to his victim, according to the judicial resolution, which takes added that there was "a standstill of two years from the statement of the accused in 2018 until the indictment in 2020".

Afterwards, the pandemic slowed down the legal process until the final sentencing this week.

He will have to pay the victim a total of 3,380 euros in compensation, and in addition to a three-year restraining order meaning he cannot approach the woman, he will have to attend a training programme on gender violence.

Despite a request for a prison term by the Public Prosecutors' Office, the court stated: "We understand that it is appropriate to grant the prisoner the benefit of the suspension of the custodial sentence, as there is no relevant data from which it can be deduced that there is a danger of reoffending".

Now read: Marriage-for-residency scam uncovered in Alicante and Murcia

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