Man convicted for raping 7-year-old girl in broad daylight in Rotterdam park
On Tuesday, the court sentenced a 55-year-old man from Rotterdam to two years in prison and compulsory psychiatric treatment for raping and sexually assaulting a 7-year-old girl. He attacked the child on August 12, 2025, in the Zuiderpark in Rotterdam.
The suspect approached the victim when she left her mother’s sight while looking for frogs. He dragged her into the reeds, laid her on the ground, pressed his hand over her mouth, and raped her in broad daylight in the busy Rotterdam park.
“This carefree and curious exploration of the world around her was disrupted horrifically by the suspect,” the court said.
The man was arrested at his home seven days after the child was raped. His DNA was found on the girl’s body. This also led to a match in a rape case in 2011.
The imposed prison sentence is lower than the five years that the Public Prosecution Service (OM) recommended.
A mental disorder has been diagnosed in the man. Because this influenced his behavior when he raped the girl, the court considers him less culpable. The court also took account of the man’s other disorders, though these could not be established with certainty because the suspect provided limited cooperation.
