A Belgian court has overturned the conviction of a 23-year-old man for rape after he passed a lie detector test during his appeal.
The man had been found guilty earlier this year and sentenced to three years in prison, with one year suspended.
The case involved an incident in the summer of 2021, after a music festival in Antwerp, where he had sex with a female friend in the back seat of a car. When the man penetrated her, she said she did not want to continue and he reportedly stopped. She filed a rape complaint the next day.
During the appeal, prosecutor-general Marc Verhelst suggested the man take a polygraph test. The accused agreed, maintaining throughout that the encounter had been consensual. The test reportedly supported his claim, showing no signs of deception.
Both the accused and the complainant gave extensive testimonies during the appeal hearing. Verhelst presented the polygraph test as supporting evidence and requested an acquittal. On 4 December, the Court of Appeal declared the man not guilty of rape.
Verhelst has advocated for wider use of polygraphs in complex sexual offence cases where objective evidence is scarce. He explained that he proposes the test in cases that hinge on conflicting accounts and says a dozen suspects agree to it each year.
While acknowledging that polygraph results are not standalone proof, he considers them supporting evidence and a valuable guide in determining charges.
He also emphasised the importance of witness testimonies, which he finds often shed light on the situation.
