During the trial of former Czech MP Dominik Feri, who has been sentenced to three years of prison for raping two women and attempting to rape a third, the presiding judge said that he laughed so loudly during the testimony of his rape victims, that his laughter could be heard in the courtroom where they were delivering their testimony.
Feri was separated from his victims in another room while they delivered their testimony, but he was listening to them on his audio device.
“He laughed so loudly that it could be heard in the courtroom. Two victims mentioned this as a significantly unpleasant circumstance during their testimony. The defendant has the right to a defense, but not in such a blunt and insensitive way,” stated Judge Lenka Hájková of the District Court for Prague 3, who found Feri guilty along with two other colleagues.
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Judge Hájková included a detailed description of the criminal acts of Feri upon delivering the verdict and then spent 40 minutes explaining why she had sentenced him to three years in prison for the rapes.
Feri was convicted of forced sexual intercourse, including with a victim under the age of 18. The Former TOP 09 deputy Dominik Feri is to go to prison for three years. This is the first publicly known personality convicted of rape in connection with the abuse of his power.
Judge Hájková explained why she accepted the prosecutor’s findings, including expert testimony, convincing testimony from Feri’s victims, and corroborating testimony from their friends, which all played a role. However, the verdict is not final, as Feri has appealed the case.
Judge Hájková addressed in detail the trauma the former politician caused to his victims. He touched the lives of two of them in an extreme way. “It cannot be overlooked that these were promising young women who suffered a long-term reduction in quality of life due to the defendant. It marked their life path,” she pointed out.
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The first victim, a 17-year-old, was raped at her home while she was semi-conscious, while the other one was thrown on her bed at her home and told “Don’t make problems,” while he raped her. The judge said he abused the “choked” girl while she was in different positions, for which she now suffers from severe post-traumatic stress disorder.
“She testified in a focused manner, at key moments she was upset, tearful. She took it badly that she doesn’t remember some of the events,” the judge described the testimony of the younger girl. Although partially unconscious, the judge claimed this may have been due to her psychological state, as one theory presented, although not proven, was that Feri had drugged her with a psychotropic substance administered in a drink.
The older of the two women wanted to work for him as an intern. The court found that the politician had pushed up against her in the parliamentary kitchen shortly before midnight, and wanted to kiss and touch her. The girl ran away from him to the elevator, but Feri caught up with her and continued the pressure. “She resented the violation of personal space; she was tearful, anxious,” the judge said during her testimony.
Feri defended himself after the verdict.
“I had no doubt that the court would decide my innocence. I’m disappointed to be convicted of something that didn’t happen. I was there,” said Feri after the verdict. He said sexual intercourse with both women occurred, but according to him, it was consensual. He also insists that the inconsistencies in the victims’ statements were such that the judge should have acquitted him.
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As Remix News previously reported, Feri had over 700,000 followers on Instagram at one time, and in 2016, he described himself as “crown sunshine man” in the media and supported the admission of refugees to Czechia. However, at the time, he insisted he would offer no compromises toward refugees who come to Czechia and are found guilty of rape.
Politico gushed over Feri in 2019, naming him a “dreamer” and one of the “28 people who will shape Europe in the year ahead,” with the publication writing: “Feri isn’t just the youngest parliamentarian in the country’s history. He’s the first black one — and conspicuously so. He wears his hair in a bushy afro and enjoys playing Fats Waller-style jazz piano in local clubs.”
Politico also wrote about the alleged troubles he faced as a Black Czech politician, writing: “It’s not easy being young and black in the Czech Republic, where the number of residents of African descent remains minuscule and racial intolerance is widespread.”
Feri also told Politico that he faces “constant mockery and threats by some people. Or, even worse, many people won’t even take you seriously.”
Feri was born in the Czech Republic on July 11, 1996. His mother was Czech, and his father had ancestors from Ethiopia. In 2017, he ran in last place on the list of politicians for the TOP 09 party in Prague. However, with 15,003 preferential votes, he came in second place among the candidates and, at the age of 21, won the title of the youngest member of parliament in the Czech Republic.
