On Monday, the trial began where four adults from the same neighborhood are accused of gross rape of children. A pair of parents and their eldest son are accused of assaulting the two youngest children in the family, a boy and a girl. Their neighbour, a man in his 30s, is also accused of assaulting the girl. In addition, he is accused of assaulting his own son. All three children were under 10 years old when the abuse started. Several people notified the child protection agency. It was the neighbor who was first arrested, in autumn 2020. The child protection agency had then received three reports of concern. Two of them expressed concern about the relationship between the neighbor and the daughter in the family. They were observed on a playground and in a pool, and the reporter said that it was unpleasant to see the relationship the man had with the girl. Astrid Aksnes (left) defends the woman in her 40s together with prosecutor Ellen Cathrine Greve. Photo: Maria Gunnarsdotter Svedal Another report of concern concerned claims the children had brought to other children. Among other things, one of the children is said to have said “When mum is late for work, I have to undress dad”. During the investigation of the neighbour, the police became interested in the parents in his neighbourhood. The two were arrested in the summer of 2021. Later, their eldest son was also involved. In February this year, he was charged in the same case. The four defendants pleaded not guilty on all counts on the first day of the trial. Three weeks of hearings, 50 hours of arranged child hearings are to be played and over 100 people are to testify in the abuse case, which led to the children’s welfare themselves asking to be investigated. – There is extensive evidence, much larger than what is usually seen in abuse cases, said prosecutor Ellen Cathrine Greve on the first day of court. The first three weeks are set aside for review of the arranged hearings. It is only in the fourth trial week that the defendants must explain themselves. – Beyond comprehension When the prosecutor began his introduction to the court, the large amount of evidence was a topic. She is clear about what will be the biggest challenge in the case: – It is to place the various evidence we have against the four defendants, and give a presentation that is understandable, she says to news. Ellen Cathrine Greve is the prosecutor in the case. Photo: Maria Gunnarsdotter Svedal In the introduction, she also pointed to what the prosecution sees as key issues. – For most of us, what the children explain is difficult to understand. It is difficult to understand that this could happen. It is beyond the comprehension of most people, she said. She also told the court that they must consider whether the mentioned assaults are “physically possible”. According to her, a central issue is whether the children are telling the truth. – Is what they are talking about fantasy, or is it rooted in reality? She believes that it is not the law and the laws that are the challenge in this case, but the assessment of the evidence. – Difficult to get out of the tunnel vision It is the defenders of the defendants who have wanted the hearing to be played in its entirety. – I have never seen a case where so many arranged hearings have been taken, said the defender to the neighbour, Kai-Inge Gavle. According to him, it is rare for a child to have more than three hearing loss. He listed that the three victims in this case have been interrogated respectively nine, twelve and fifteen times. The hearing was done over a period of around three years. Prosecutor Greve points out that by playing everything you can see the development in the explanations given to the children. Defense attorney Gavle pointed out that the investigation has been going on for a very long time and that the police have spent a lot of resources on the case. – There is a lot of prestige at stake. It is difficult to get out of the tunnel vision, he said. Jan Henrik Høines (left) defends the man in his 50s and Kai-Inge Gavle defends the man in his 30s. Photo: Maria Gunnarsdotter Svedal Several of the other defenders also point out that the case has been investigated for a long time and that it has affected children’s rights. These are the defendants: Man in his 50s. Father of two of the victims. Accused of aggravated rape of his son and daughter. The abuse must have happened on several occasions and over several years. Both children were under ten years old when the abuse started. Several of the abuses are said to have occurred against both children at the same time. The father also allegedly forced the youngest son to abuse his younger sister. Is also accused of sexual acts against his own dog. Was previously sentenced to 1.5 years in prison for downloading abuse material between 2013 and 2017. Woman in her 40s. Mother of two of the victims. She is charged with aggravated rape of her son and daughter. The abuse must have occurred on several occasions and over several years. According to the indictment, both children were under ten years old when the abuse started. According to the indictment, she was aware that her son was being abused by his own father. She must have been present during the assault without doing anything to stop it. She is also said to have shown her daughter films that show child abuse. Man in his 20s, oldest son in the family and older brother of two of the offended. Accused of aggravated rape of his own sister and his own brother. The abuse must have continued over several years. They are said to have started when the brother and sister were under ten years old. Man in his 30s. Neighbor of the other defendants in the case and father of one of the victims. He is charged with aggravated rape of his own son and the girl next door. The assault is said to have occurred several times over a period of around one year. Both children were under ten years old when the abuse started. In addition to assaulting both of them, he is said to have caused the two to perform sexual acts against each other. against children.
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Mother, father, older brother and neighbor in court – news Vestland
