A 74-year-old man from Belgium has been sentenced to five years in prison for sexually assaulting a young boy with Down’s syndrome. The retired GP, who practiced in Liège, received his verdict at the Liège Court of Appeal, where one-third of his sentence was suspended. The incidents occurred in March and May 2021, with the victim revealing that he was assaulted twice by the perpetrator, who maintained a relationship with the boy’s father even after retirement. One of the assaults took place during a shared shower at the doctor’s residence following a sports activity, while the details of the second incident were less clear. The accused refuted the victim’s claims, but conflicting explanations arose regarding his presence with the child in the shower. Medical examinations confirmed signs of abuse, and a psychological evaluation identified the former doctor as having a narcissistic personality.
In a prior trial in late September, the defendant initially received a five-year sentence with two-thirds suspended, while the prosecution advocated for a six-year term due to the victim’s vulnerability. His legal team argued for an acquittal or a suspended sentence. This case emerges amidst a troubling situation in France, where a 74-year-old surgeon named Joel Le Scouarnec was found guilty of sexually abusing numerous individuals, primarily underage patients, over an extended period. Le Scouarnec admitted to 111 rapes and 188 sexual assaults, resulting in a maximum 20-year prison sentence. His history of abuse spanned three decades and involved a large number of victims, both male and female, averaging around 11 years old. The severity of the charges was compounded by his status as a respected medical professional, enabling him to evade accountability for an extended period. Le Scouarnec maintained detailed records of his criminal acts, including names, ages, and types of abuse inflicted on his victims. Notably, he reportedly documented his perverse satisfaction in being a pedophile in his yearly journal entries.