A stepfather was convicted of raping his stepdaughter over many years on Wednesday by the Charleroi Criminal Court, which handed down an eight-year prison sentence.
A second defendant, the former best friend of the first suspect, was also prosecuted for similar offences against the victim, but was acquitted by the court.
The prosecution had sought sentences of seven and ten years in prison for the two defendants.
In early August 2023, the defendant's ex-wife filed a complaint with the police.
The stepdaughter of the first defendant confided in the second individual about the rapes committed by the first suspect, of which she had been a victim since the age of 11.
The second defendant then repeated the victim’s account to his ex-wife.
"The victim said she was forced to perform sexual acts, sometimes in the middle of the night, when the defendant woke her up," the prosecution said.
The first defendant, who was stepfather of the victim, denied the allegations of rape, while admitting that he had, in his words, "consensual sexual relations" with the victim from the age of 16 until she was over 18.
The second individual being prosecuted also claimed that these were "consensual sexual relations".
"I was in a relationship with my partner, but also with the complainant. It was a secret relationship," the defendant added.
The prosecution sought seven and ten-year prison sentences for the two men, who had no previous criminal records.
Their lawyers had pleaded for acquittal on the rape charges.
