Swedish court raises prison sentence of man convicted of sexual assault

Sweden's Court of Appeal on Friday raised a 7-year prison sentence handed down to a man convicted of sexually violating young girls in Sweden to eight years in prison, Swedish Television reported.

The man was previously convicted by a district court, but the Court of Appeal issued a harsher sentence, raising his prison term to the maximum.

The man was also ordered to pay damages. The crimes were revealed after the man, who is in his mid-forties, was reported to the police and a raid was conducted at his home in Ulricehamn in western Sweden.

The police were able to link the man to several sexual assaults on young girls from all over Sweden before arresting him in the summer of 2015.

Most of the victims were between 12 and 16 years old at the time of the assaults, which took place between 2010 and 2015. However, one victim was as young as 10.

The man contacted the girls through online chat programs and convinced them to undress and perform sexual acts in front of web cameras. The man was accused of several crimes, including aggravated sexual assault on children, aggravated sexual exploitation of minors, child pornography crimes and slander.

Margareta Esplund, the counsel for 14 of the young plaintiffs, said the harsher sentence "sends an important signal to society" and that the 14 girls she represent were still suffering emotionally from feelings of guilt and shame. Endit