Spain: "Wolf Pack" given 15 years for rape
June 21, 2019
The Supreme Court of Spain on Friday sentenced five men to 15 years in prison for raping a woman during the 2016 San Fermin Festival in Pamplona, famous for the running of the bulls.
The court overturned the men's previous charge of sexual assault, which had carried a sentence of only 9 years, the El Pais newspaper reported.
Calling themselves"the Wolf Pack," the men attacked the then 18-year-old victim in a doorway in the early hours of the festival. They sent each other videos of the rape and joked about the attack on WhatsApp, both of which were used against them in court.
The teenage victim was found weeping on a bench by a couple who called the police. Biological tests carried out by doctors were also used as evidence against the defendants.
The men were at first convicted of sexual assault because rape charges in Spain at the time required the plaintiff to provide proof of intimidation or violence such as being beaten or threatened with a weapon.
After the first verdict was reached, mass protests were organized throughout Spain, with demonstrators chanting "it's not abuse, it's rape," eventually leading to a change in the law.
Both the plaintiff and the defendants had sought to appeal the original decision by the regional court in Navarra, with the men claiming it was a consensual encounter and lawyers for the victim saying it was not sexual assault, but rape.
One of the defendants was sentenced to an additional two years for stealing the woman's phone.
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