A 51-year-old man was given a one-year suspended sentence by the Bruges criminal court for the possession and distribution of images of child sexual abuse. The case came to light when his partner notified the police.
The partner of the accused went to the police on 4 August 2023. He had seen disturbing and shocking images and handed them over to the police.
A subsequent search of the home revealed that the accused, M.V., had been in possession of images of sexual abuse of minors since 2013. In total, more than 400 images of child sexual abuse were found. In addition, on 12 November 2022, the Bruges resident sent a video of minor sexual abuse via WhatsApp.
The Public Prosecutor explained that M.V. had been struggling with sexual problems for some time. This was also evident from a previous conviction. "It is clear that this is unacceptable," said Prosecutor Lode Vandaele, who demanded a one-year prison sentence and a fine of 4,000 euros.
The Public Prosecutor's Office considered it appropriate to link the sentence to probation conditions. However, the court psychiatrist expressed serious doubts about the usefulness of therapy for the defendant. "If it doesn't help, it certainly won't hurt," said the Public Prosecutor's Office.
The defence agreed with the Public Prosecutor's analysis. "My client is working on his sexual problems, but knows that this is likely to be a lifelong struggle," said lawyer Jean-Marie De Meester.
De Meester unsuccessfully requested acquittal for the distribution of the images, arguing that this had happened accidentally during the chat. "The conversation with the person from Hong Kong clearly shows that it was not his intention to send the video."
The judge ultimately sentenced M.V. to one year in prison, suspended, with conditions. The defendant was also fined €4,000, of which 800 euros is effective.
