The family of a young girl allegedly raped by a suspect who was released early from a French prison due to COVID-related 'crowding' concerns is preparing to sue the government, according to reports. In October, the 17-year-old victim reportedly crossed paths with her alleged rapist, 27, who had been sprung from prison months ahead of schedule, in a town in the Nord-Isère department of France.
The suspect, described as a "colossus" with eight prior convictions, had been sentenced to four years in prison in 2018 for "slaughtering and raping his girlfriend," the girl's father explained to local media.
The victim was allegedly drugged and raped while under death threats.
In May of 2020, the suspect was freed from a prison near Lyon by a judge who determined "the national health situation linked to the epidemic required that the occupancy rate of the Lyon-Corbas remand center, currently at 130%, be reduced in order to limit the consequences of a possible spread of the virus within the establishment.”
Thousands of prisoners were released at the time, Actu 17 reports.
“It is called a 'state lie' because the individual who raped my daughter benefited from such a measure," the victim's father said.
"How could a judge could have taken such a decision alone?"
The family's attorney, Fabien Rajon, blasted the "revolting" decision to release the suspect from confinement, asserting he had clearly "presented a high risk of recidivism."