The Grand Criminal Court issued its verdict today against a twenty-year-old man accused of sexually assaulting an 8-year-old girl - the court charged him with the crime of sexual assault against a female under the age of twelve, contrary to the provisions of Article 299 of the Penal Code, and sentenced him to eight years in prison with hard labor.

As the 8-year-old girl and her younger brother were heading home, they encountered the assailant who approached and grabbed her by the neck, restraining her, and deliberately touching “sensitive areas” of her body before she and her brother resisted the man - according to the judgment.

The defendant's behavior coincided with the presence of a prosecution witness in a neighboring house to the crime scene, who witnessed the incident through surveillance cameras installed on his house. He then left his house to rescue the girl and apprehend the defendant.

According to the judgment, the defendant fled the scene, and the victim's parents were informed of the assault, prompting her father to file an official complaint against the defendant before he was apprehended.

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