Morocco sentences pedophile to 20 years in prison, civil society hails ruling

A court of appeal in El Jadida sentenced, Tuesday, a man to 20 years in prison for sexually assaulting a minor. Also fined 50,000 dhs, the accused was found guilty on charges of «indecent assault on a minor, sexual exploitation and human trafficking».

The accused tried to deny the charges against him, and the head of the Primary Criminal Chamber responded by showing a video documenting his assault on children. The 57-year-old claimed he was «homosexual» and «attracted to men».

Arrested earlier this year, following the emergence of a video that showed him sexually assaulting minors, the accused was referred by the Public Prosecutor of El Jadida, where the assault took place, to the investigating judge on said charges. After the hearing, the investigating judge ordered the man to be detained in Sidi Moussa prison in El Jadida, pending judgement.

It is noteworthy that the regional service of the judicial police in the city of El Jadida had previously opened a judicial investigation under the supervision of the competent public prosecutor, in order to determine the criminal acts attributed to the 57-year-old assailant, who heads a football association in Anassi, a neighborhood in Casablanca.

The accused had organized a trip for a group of children to the city of El Jadida, and rented an apartment for them to spend a vacation, before two women took a video of him sexually assaulting a child at the city’s beach.

Civil society hails the ruling

The «Touche pas à mon enfant» (Don't touch my child, ed.) association for the protection of children against molesters hailed the ruling issued by the El Jadida court against the pedophile, calling it «fair and compliant with the legal framework».

In a statement, released following the ruling, the NGO calls the decision a «victory» and thanks «the efforts made by the civil society and human rights organizations so that the perpetrator receives the punishment» he deserves.

«The process of combating sexual abuse and exploitation of children should not stop here. Therefore, the Touche pas à mon enfant association reiterates its call to all civil and human rights activists in order to unify efforts and fight against pedophilia and the exploitation and abuse of children, through unified national initiatives», reads the same statement. The NGO also called «all relevant ministerial sectors, governmental and non-governmental institutions» to contribute to this fight «in order to ensure a bright future for our children».

The organization emphasized «the great role played by the Moroccan media in covering the stages of the case, its solidarity with the child victim, and its constant support for the organization and its struggles to protect childhood and combat pedophilia».