Turkish prosecutor claims 9-year-old girl ‘failed’ to react to abuse

Mesut Hasan Benli - ANKARA

A prosecutor in the Mediterranean province of Antalya has demanded the acquittal of a suspect in a sexual abuse case involving a nine-year-old girl, arguing that the girl did not “show reaction” during and after the harassment.

The girl claimed that her 25-year-old male cousin sexually abused her twice, first at home and then in a car once again. She also said the man threatened to kill her if she speaks about it. But she told her father about what happened. The suspect denied the charges.

At the court hearing on Oct. 11, the lawyer of the girl requested the suspect’s arrest, but the prosecutor objected.

The prosecutor argued that the alleged incident occurred in an environment where family members were present thus her account was rather “abstract.”

The prosecutor also told the court that she apparently did not show reaction to the alleged abuse during and after the incident, thus, demanding the acquittal of the suspect.