The Neufchâteau Criminal Court on Thursday sentenced a 55-year-old resident of Sainte-Ode to six years' imprisonment for sexually abusing several young boys while he was working as a handyman at a school in Bastogne.
The case was opened on the basis of a report from the social welfare centre in Bastogne, where a pupil's mother informed her social worker of the ambiguous relationship that had developed between her 11-year-old son and the school cleaner.
The ensuing investigation revealed that the 50-year-old was exchanging sexual messages with other teenagers. When they were interviewed, they explained that the accused would try to kiss them and caress their private parts while they were at his home or on the site of a house being renovated in Amberloup. Some also reported fellatio and watching pornographic videos.
In addressing the Neufchâteau Criminal Court, the accused admitted to certain inappropriate gestures towards the young boys, such as touching them on their private parts. He described these gestures as mere teasing.
On Thursday, the Neufchâteau Criminal Court sentenced the man to six years' imprisonment for violating the sexual integrity of minors. However, the judge acquitted him of the rape charge against the 11-year-old boy.
The defendant, who is married with one child, had meanwhile been dismissed from his work in schools, according to his lawyer, Alexandre Mignon.
