Dutch teen could face jail for child sex abuse allegations in Spain: report

The Public Prosecutor in Spain will demand four years in prison against 17-year-old Dutch teen Charly T. for the sexual abuse of two underage British girls. T. has been in custody in Spain since August last year, after the two girls accused him of getting them drunk and sexually abusing them. When he will stand trial is not yet clear, NOS reports.

T. met the two British friends, aged 12 and 14, while vacationing on the Spanish Costa. On the morning of his departure in August, Charly T. met the two girls at the pool of the bungalow park in Benidoleig where they were all staying with their families. The three consumed an entire bottle of vodka, according to NOS. T. was arrested on his way home to the Netherlands, after the two girls accused him of sexual abuse. This did not involve intercourse, but a number of sexual acts that the girls did not give consent for, according to them.

There were no witnesses to the incident, and the Spanish police did not do a trace evidence investigation at the bungalow park or speak to employees or other visitors, according to NOS. Both girls gave a statement to the police. NOS has video footage of the girls being questioned by a Spanish court. According to the broadcaster, both girls were "half-drunk" and only the 12-year-old girl was able to speak. She accused T. directly, while her mother held her hand. A trace evidence investigation on the girls' bodies found a minimal amount of T.'s DNA on the thigh of the 12-year-old girl, according to NOS.

PrisonLaw, a foundation that works for Dutch detained abroad, urged the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to conduct an additional and independent investigation into the case. According to PrisonLaw, the right to a fair trial was violated in this case because no official interpreters were present during the police investigation. And during during questioning in court, questions were incorrectly translated from Spanish to English. "The facts have therefore been taken out of context, which has serious consequences for the defense." Furthermore, no blood tests were done to test the alcohol consumption of the two British girls, which raises questions about the reliability of their statements, the foundation said.

"This is a minor who was on vacation and had a date" PrisonLaw lawyer Rachel Imamkhan said to NOS. "The youngest girl liked Charly, but he showed no interest in her. Finally she made the incriminating statement against him. The strange thing is that both girls can't remember anything."

CDA parliamentarians Pieter Omtzigt and Martijn van Helvert asked parliamentary questions to Minister Stef Blok of Foreign Affairs about this case. "Regardless of whether this boy is guilty or not, I do not feel that everything is being done to bring this boy to the Netherlands as long as his trial is not happening in Spain. The fact is that a Dutch underage boy has been detained in a Spanish cell for over five months without a judge being involved", Van Helvert said to NOS. "Of course, many Dutch are arrested abroad. But this really is a different matter, in which a minor boy is detained without any form of trial. This is also not about an event on the other side of the world. It's Spain."

Every year around 1,350 Dutch are arrested abroad. Three quarters of these arrests happen in Europe, particularly in Germany, France, England, Belgium and Spain. There are currently 250 Dutch in custody in Spain. Charly T. is the only Dutch minor in a foreign prison, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.