On the fourth and last day of his trial, Paulo D., 45, was sentenced this Friday to fifteen years in prison by the Paris Assize Court for raping two Sciences-po students in May and July 2019, in the Bois de Boulogne (16th century).
Two particularly brutal rapes, committed at nightfall, on two very young single women, in a form of "seriality", as the Advocate General, Vincent Ferron, had pointed out on Thursday.
This sentence, accompanied in particular by an injunction for care, is less severe than that required Thursday by the public prosecutor, who had claimed sixteen years of criminal imprisonment.
“We found the requisitions already rather weak, for a rape in competition, and what is more in recidivism.
And the court decided to go below.
It is a very surprising decision, and well below the expectations of the civil parties, ”regrets Me Mathias Darmon, lawyer for Lin
(the first name has been changed)
, one of the two victims.
Me Louis Balling, the lawyer for the second victim of Paulo D., Rose
(assumed name)
, did not hide his disappointment either.
“It is an extremely light sentence, given the seriousness of the facts,” he lamented.
Rose, for her part, said she was "appeased" at the end of these four days of hearings, which were sometimes trying.
“It's an end point in this chapter.
I wanted justice, not revenge.
For me, the most important thing is the order for care that has been ordered, ”reacted the young woman, now 20 years old.
“I told him that I offered him my forgiveness”
This brilliant student of Sciences-po went to speak to Paulo D., just after the verdict was delivered.
“I told him that I offered him my forgiveness, hoping that he would oblige.
I hope he gets serious treatment.
And it was my mother who went to comfort the accused's sister, who was in shock after the verdict.
»
My Maïa Kantor and Romain Ruiz, the defense lawyers, for their part welcomed a decision which to them “seems to be influenced by recognized humanity”.
"We hope it will make sense for all parties to this trial," added the two Parisian criminals.
At the start of his trial on Tuesday, the 45-year-old truck driver first disputed the facts, as he had done throughout the investigation.
But he ended up recognizing the two rapes at the hearing, saying he was possessed by “the demon”.
He also asked for forgiveness from his victims on several occasions.
In Portugal, he had already been sentenced to eleven years and ten months in prison, for having attempted to murder his ex-fiancée, and shot the three witnesses at the scene, on New Year's Eve 2004.
