12-year-old forced to commit rape "Loverboy" must answer to the Zurich High Court

A so-called "loverboy" has to answer to the Zurich High Court today, Monday. He is a 23-year-old who provided a twelve-year-old girl to his "bros" for rape.

Keystone-SDA

02.12.2024, 05:51

02.12.2024, 07:43

SDA

This case is a drastic example of the so-called "loverboy" form of abuse. "Loverboys" are men who manipulate, addict and exploit girls or women who are in love with them. They often pressure the victims to have sex with others - as was the case in this case from Winterthur.

The juvenile court of the district of Winterthur sentenced the main accused to 8 years and 9 months' imprisonment in 2022, which is now being appealed to the higher court. However, it was clear to the court at the time that the sex between the girl and her friends, the "bros", was not voluntary.

Power imbalance exploited

The then twelve-year-old girl was madly in love with the teenager, who was four years older. The convicted man had not actively created this power imbalance. But he had quickly recognized it and exploited it for himself and his colleagues, the judge said at the opening of the verdict.

During the trial, the "loverboy" and his six friends claimed that the girl had always participated voluntarily and that they had "all had fun together". They were only in court because the girl did not want to be seen as a slut.

"Only the men had fun"

However, the court in Winterthur came to a different conclusion, simply because there is a video of a gang rape. "The only ones who had fun here were the men," said the judge at the time. He described the behavior of the seven accused as "absolutely despicable".

The main defendant was convicted of 16 criminal offenses, the most serious of which were human trafficking, rape and sexual acts with children. His "bros", who were "allowed" to have the girl, are also on trial again. They were sentenced to conditional and in some cases unconditional prison sentences in 2022.

Federal court allows media access

Because the main accused was still a minor for some of the crimes charged, he tried to exclude the media from the trial until the Federal Supreme Court - but without success.

At the end of October, the Federal Supreme Court ruled that the media could report on the case. After all, the accused had been an adult for more than five years. In addition, the crime had caused a great stir among the population.

However, the media are subject to certain conditions, such as that the alleged perpetrators and the victim must not be identifiable. Places of residence, dates of birth and nationalities may not be disclosed. The general public is excluded from the trial.