The High Court of Justice of Catalonia (TSJC) has upheld a 21-year prison sentence for a Mossos d'Esquadra officer, a member of Catalonia’s regional police force, convicted of sexually assaulting his stepson’s disabled partner in Barcelona.

The decision means the custodial sentence imposed by the Barcelona Provincial Court in July remains in force. The ruling also maintains a 500-metre exclusion zone around the victim, her home, place of study and workplace, providing continuing court-ordered protection in Barcelona.

The Appeals Section of the TSJC Civil and Criminal Chamber rejected the defence appeal, according to reports on Thursday 29th October. The court upheld a 16-year sentence for continuous sexual assault involving penetration and exploitation of the victim’s mental condition, plus five years for pornography offences involving an abuse of trust.

The offences upheld by the court

The case concerned the partner of the officer’s stepson, who has a disability. The court found that the defendant used a deception, presenting himself as a teacher at a massage academy in order to obtain her agreement to sexual practices.

Under the Spanish criminal-law categories applied in the case, the first offence concerned repeated sexual assault with penetration in circumstances where the victim’s mental condition was exploited. The second concerned pornographic material obtained through a relationship of trust.

For both offences, the court accepted that the defendant had made reparation for harm, a mitigating factor under Spanish law. That finding did not alter the combined 21-year prison sentence upheld by the TSJC.

Restrictions lasting beyond the prison term

The judgment prohibits the officer from approaching within 500 metres of the victim, or her home, study location or workplace. He is also barred from contacting her.

  • For the sexual-assault offence, the no-contact and exclusion order will run for 10 years beyond the 16-year prison sentence.
  • For the pornography offence, the restrictions will run for six years beyond the five-year sentence.
  • He is barred from any paid or unpaid job, trade or activity involving regular, direct contact with under-18s for 15 years beyond the prison terms.
  • The court imposed eight years of supervised release.

Supervised release is a post-custody measure under which a convicted person remains subject to conditions set by the court after leaving prison. The ruling also orders the defendant to pay the victim €60,000 in compensation for non-financial harm.

For Barcelona residents, the immediate consequence is that the victim-protection restrictions, including the 500-metre exclusion zone and communication ban, remain attached to the upheld conviction alongside the prison sentence and the employment ban involving children.

Sources: Metrópoli, Enara López de la Peña, Newsroom Infobae.