Court increases sentence for man convicted of child sexual assault in Eastern Finland

The Court of Appeal in Eastern Finland has increased the prison sentence of a young man convicted of child sexual assault by six months, bringing it to a total of 3.5 years of imprisonment. The man, who is in his twenties, was initially sentenced to three years by the South Karelia District Court in December. Both courts concluded that, in addition to the sexual assault, the man also committed aggravated sexual exploitation of a child.

The man had connected with the underage victim through the widely used social media platform Snapchat. At the time of the offenses, he was 21 years old, while the victim was 13. They had communicated on the platform for an extended period before their first meeting, during which the man had sexual intercourse with the child five times. Additionally, he had touched the victim’s breasts and buttocks multiple times. The acts occurred between September 2022 and May 2023, while the child was 13 to 14 years old. The man was aware of the victim’s age from the beginning.

While the man admitted to meeting the child at his home, he claimed it was merely a friendship and denied all sexual contact. He appealed the district court’s decision, requesting that the charges be dismissed or, alternatively, that his sentence be reduced. He also sought a reduction in the compensation amount, which was set at over €11,000 for the victim.

Both the victim and the prosecution opposed the man’s appeals, with the prosecution arguing for an increase in his sentence to 3.5 years. Ultimately, the appeals court upheld the higher sentence and rejected the request for reduced compensation. The man remains in custody, and the ruling is not yet final, allowing for an appeal to the Supreme Court until December 9.