An Afghan man has been sentenced to four years in prison for raping an intoxicated 18-year-old Polish tourist in a Munich subway station in August of last year.
The Munich Regional Court found that based on the evidence, which included surveillance camera footage and the victim’s testimony, that the Polish man was raped by the Afghan man without consent.
“Sexual acts were carried out on the victim against the victim’s recognizable will,” said the judge.
The court determined that the victim was undressed and raped over the course of half an hour, with the perpetrator knowing it was a time of night when no trains would be running during that time, according to German news outlet BR.de.
The convicted Afghan did not speak during the trial, but due to the video surveillance, the court was able to corroborate most of the victim’s testimony. Despite being intoxicated at the time, his testimony was in line with what the surveillance footage showed.
“A victim who tried the whole time to be left alone and to be allowed to sleep off his hangover – that is the image that primarily dominated,” said the judge. During the attack, the young man was too drunk to defend himself.
The Afghan was also convicted for stealing the victim’s phone, a fact that helped the police find the suspect.
The court had difficulty determining the Afghan man’s age, but eventually settled on the age of 19 at the time of the attack.
News of the case was quite controversial at the time, with the previous Law and Justice (PiS) government in Poland saying it was a perfect example of how Germany’s open borders policies had led to an unsafe environment for citizens.
At the time, Remix News produced a video detailing the statements from then Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki.
