Story By: Georgina Jadikovska, Sub-Editor: Marija Stojkoska, Agency: Newsflash
A Swiss court has put a prostitute on probation and fined her over GBP 6,000 for having sex with a 13-year-old schoolboy in a seedy brothel.
The Romanian sex worker from the city of Basel in Switzerland, whose identity was not disclosed but was reportedly aged 23, was fined by the criminal court after she had sex with the boy in September 2020.
The 23-year-old, who was also given a two-year-long probation, will also have to pay a total of CHF 8,100 (GBP 6,414) divided in 90-day installments of 90 CHF (GBP 71), according to the court ruling.
Local media reported the teenager made an appointment with the sex worker after he had previously seen her profile on a dating site called ‘xdate.ch’.
The boy then contacted the woman through WhatsApp and scheduled the ten-minute-long session in a brothel located on Mattenstrasse Street in the city of Basel, where he arrived with a friend later during the same day.
However, instead of confirming his age, when he failed to provide an ID, the sex worker just believed him and took the money for the transaction when he said: “Yes, I’m 18.”
According to the public prosecutor’s indictment the sexual act was concluded in 10 minutes after “the woman asked him [the boy] whether he was still a virgin, which he confirmed”.
However, on his way out of the brothel, the 13-year-old child ran into a police patrol that happened to be passing by.
Officers immediately checked him due to his young appearance and he was forced to admit everything, including his real age, after which the prostitute was caught and found guilty.
During the Friday trial, defence attorney Dominique Anwander argued that the teenage boy was actively searching for prostitutes online and was ready to pay for their services.
He added: “The boy’s necessary maturity for sexual intercourse was there even if you would hardly think that such a young person would go to a brothel.”
The lawyer defended the Romanian woman by stating that she was only fulfilling her duties as an employee.
Additionally, the prostitute denied any sexual activities with the minor and said that he “only wanted to touch her”, to which Court President Sarah Cruz said: “Even touching itself is a sexual act.”
The public prosecutor’s office demanded a conditional imprisonment of nine months and a five-year ban from the country for the prostitute for failing to verify the boy’s age.
However, the court rejected the public prosecutor’s demands and sentenced the woman to a two-year probation period and fined her with instalments of CHF 90 (GBP 71), which she has to pay over a period of 90 days.
The prostitute, who is also a mother of a minor that lives in Romania, will also have to regularly check whether her clients fulfill the legal age of consent in Switzerland (16 years).
