Both defendant and prosecutors appeal Amsterdam King’s Day rape sentence

The Public Prosecution Service (OM) is appealing the 18-month prison sentence, with six months conditionally suspended, handed to a man convicted of raping a woman on King’s Day in Amsterdam, calling it too lenient. Prosecutors had originally recommended a three-year term. The convicted man has also filed an appeal, his lawyer confirmed.

The OM maintains that Sirio S. deliberately raped the woman. The court disagreed, though it did find that he should have realized she did not consent, resulting in a lesser sentence.

The convicted man is appealing as well, confirmed his lawyer Anne-Claire van Dijk. "We disagree with both the conviction and the sentence." She declined to comment on which aspects of the ruling the defense is contesting.

Videos circulated on social media showing a 28-year-old Italian man on top of a 35-year-old Irish woman between parked cars on the Keizersgracht. Additional clips showed several women stepping in to intervene. The police compiled these recordings, which formed the primary evidence for the court’s decision.

In court, the defendant stated he had few memories of the incident and expressed shame, taking responsibility for his actions. The woman, in her victim statement, said she could not recall any details of the incident.

The court noted that the woman was in a vulnerable, intoxicated state, and although there was no clear evidence of Sirio S. using force or having a predetermined plan to rape, he should have realized the woman “did not consent to being penetrated by the defendant at that time and place.”