An imam is accused of raping a 12-year-old child and his 7-year-old sister, who were studying at the mosque he oversees in Chtouka Ait Baha in central Morocco.
According to local media reports published on Sunday, the imam will be presented to court this week.
The report explains that suspicions about the case started when the parents discovered physical signs of abuse on their two children and questioned them. The brother and sister then told their parents that it was the imam of the mosque where they were studying who had subjected them to physical violence.
The father then filed a complaint with local authorities, who processed the case and sent it to the Prosecutor’s Office.
After filing the complaint, the gendarmerie apprehended the 62-year-old imam, while the two victims underwent a medical examination that confirmed they had been raped.
The evidence was sufficient to detain the suspect before presenting him to court.
On Monday, local media equally reported on another rape crime involving yet another minor in Beni Mellal.
Reports indicate that the criminal division of the local court handed down a two-year suspended prison sentence to a man accused of raping three underage girls.
The light sentence provoked indignation from NGOs, who considered the judgment an insult to the victims.
The penal code punishes non-violent rape involving minors with 2 to 5 years in prison.
