Andorra Court Concludes Two High-Profile Sexual Assault Trials, Verdicts Pending

Andorra's Tribunal de Corts has concluded trials in two high-profile sexual assault cases, with verdicts now pending. Prosecutors seek 15 years in the first, involving a 47-year-old man accused of abusing his daughter, and nine years plus a 12-year no-contact order in the second, against a 33-year-old Colombian man charged with major sexual assault—classified as rape—on his 31-year-old roommate. In related proceedings, the court approved extradition to Spain for a man convicted of abusing his adoptive daughters, and ordered psychiatric oversight for a woman who sent death threats to a doctor's office.

In the first case, the man—detained since May 1, 2024—faces charges of continuous sexual abuse of a minor under 14 by a relative, sexual assault equivalent to rape, and minor domestic maltreatment. The abuse allegedly occurred when his daughter was aged 4 to 10; now 15, she disclosed it five years later and entered protective custody. Sessions on Monday and Tuesday revealed family mistreatment patterns. He admits parenting failures and outbursts but denies sexual acts. His defense seeks acquittal on those charges, citing the penal code's "sexual acts" wording at the time, which they argue implied no force. They concede possible maltreatment or a two-year term matching time served.

The second case, which ended Friday after sessions spanning several days, centers on an alleged July 14, 2024, incident at their Aixirivall shared home following a night out with alcohol. The man has been in pretrial detention for nearly 18 months. He testified first, denying all claims and describing their bond as one of "trust and friendship." After a friend's cancellation, they went out, clashed verbally over her relationship with their employer—her partner—and argued at home after his casino ejection. He admitted a struggle to remove her from his room but rejected neck-grabbing, bed-throwing, under-clothing genital touching, pants-unbuttoning, or penetration attempt. He claimed she threatened police, recorded audio amid her personal issues for leverage, and received his apologetic message the next day "for the situation," not assault.

The woman, who testified in December 2024 and skipped hearings to avoid revictimization, described his post-drinking shift to controlling aggression: neck-grabbing, bed-throwing, repeated digital vaginal penetration despite her pleas. In shock, she recorded audio, confided in friends that night, faced eviction by her partner—who kept him employed and housed to finish a project—and delayed reporting until late August due to fear, isolation, and lack of support. She later received Women's Institute assistance, hotel stays, and therapy.

Casino security recounted his "violent and aggressive" late-night breach of a restricted area—their only notable intervention. Experts noted her anxiety, insomnia, hypervigilance, and persistent distress consistent with her account, though not definitively PTSD; no issues emerged for him. Police confirmed the complaint, arrest, and phone analysis revealing related messages and audio where he reportedly urged silence on "the finger thing" and apologized for his "brusque act."

Witnesses offered conflicting views: her partner recalled her agitated next-day call, behavioral changes, and therapy needs but admitted delaying separation for work; colleagues said she initially downplayed it as alcohol-fueled tension and later seemed calm; friends and family described her tearful, fearful state and ongoing trauma; nightlife observers saw her more intoxicated without his overt aggression, linking strife to work tensions. A recurring theme: her fear of relational fallout with her partner delayed reporting. Prosecutors call her consistent narrative backed by recordings, messages, over a dozen witnesses, two forensic doctors, and equality experts—proving digital penetration as rape—while dismissing defense claims of contradictions, indirect evidence, edited videos, and partner-sourced distress. The defense demands full acquittal and release, arguing flight risk is moot; prosecutors oppose, citing ongoing detention grounds. Sentencing is set for March 13.

The extradition ruling sent a man to Spain for a 2023 plea deal of five years and six months for abusing his adoptive daughters in Seville from 2013-2016. The court rejected local imprisonment at La Comella despite his Andorran residence since 2019, partner, and children—including an 18-year-old biological son who died December 1, 2024, at his mother's in Utrera, now under investigation. Autistic with depression, he has attempted suicide in custody, sees Andorra as home, blames Spain and the mother for his losses, and fears mental breakdown. Prosecutors met legal criteria; defense plans Tribunal Superior appeal.

In a separate ruling, the court imposed 10 months of monthly outpatient psychiatric oversight and a two-year no-contact order on a woman who sent hundreds of threats—death warnings like "your days are numbered," a "black handkerchief" signal at Les Bons, and curses invoking cancer, fire, suicide, or killings—to an Andorra la Vella doctor's office, staff, and families. A report diagnosed paranoid psychosis requiring lifelong neuroleptics, absolving criminal responsibility due to impaired reality perception.