Prosecutors on Tuesday requested a four-year prison term for a man in his 60s who appeared before the Verviers Criminal Court on suspicion of raping one of his granddaughters.
The abuse allegedly began when the victim was six years old and continued for a decade.
The defendant, who appeared in court a free man, denied the charges, claiming he had never touched any of his 19 grandchildren.
According to the defendant, the complaint filed against him was made in response to a remark he allegedly made to his daughter-in-law – the victim's mother – about the number of men her own mother was hosting in her home.
The defendant also explained that he was separated from his wife and lived alone in a cottage. His ex-wife lived in a caravan next door. When the alleged victim visited them, always accompanied by her brother, she slept in her grandmother's caravan, he said. This was confirmed by the grandmother.
However, the prosecution wondered what interest the victim would have in making such accusations, and requested a four-year prison sentence for the defendant. The civil party also pointed out that an expert opinion had found the complainant to be credible.
The defence dismissed this opinion which, it claimed, came from an expert who was no longer used by the courts. The defendant's lawyers highlighted, on the other hand, an expert opinion on the accused, which, they said, found no paedophilic tendencies and concluded that there was nothing to report about him.
The defence therefore requested his acquittal on the basis of reasonable doubt.
Judgment will be issued on 12 September.
