Two French police officers from an anti-gang unit were found guilty on Thursday in Paris of raping a Canadian tourist.
The officers, now identified as Nicolas R. and Antoine Q., were each sentenced to seven years in prison and also ordered to pay fines equivalent to $30,000 Cdn, according to French news channel LCI.
Emily Spanton, a counsellor from St. Catharines, Ont., was visiting Paris in April 2014 when she met the officers at an Irish pub and later was given a tour of police headquarters, where the incident occurred.
When she left the building later, Spanton approached another officer and reported that she had been raped, her lawyer has said.
Spanton — who agreed to be identified publicly — first said she had been raped by four officers before revising her testimony to cite three police officers. Only two were ultimately charged.
According to court documents, DNA from the men were found on underwear submitted as evidence. As well, a medical exam performed after she filed a lawsuit showed she had bruises on several parts of her body and a gynecological lesion.
The officers, whose identities had not been publicly disclosed, faced up to 20 years in prison. One of the officers admitted he received oral sex but claimed it was consensual. The other initially denied any sexual relationship then admitted to some mutual touching.
Tests confirmed the complainant was legally intoxicated at the time.
The case went to trial after a French Appeal Court overturned a decision by a lower court to dismiss the charges against the officers, who work in the department’s Brigades de recherche et d’intervention anti-gang unit.
According to a report from LCI, Spanton left the court building without making a statement, while the officers were handcuffed in court to be prepared for processing. They had been free pending trial.
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