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Photo: Moti Kimhi
Soldier charged with sexual assault gets 1 year in prison
Military court accepts plea bargain as part of which defendant, accused of rape, admits to lesser charges
An Armored Corps soldier, Corporal A., was sentenced to one year in prison as part of a plea bargain in a rape case on Tuesday. "The defendant's acts are ugly and despicable," the judges noted in the verdict.
The Haifa Military Court accepted a plea bargain between the defense counsels and the military prosecution. In exchange for his confession, the prosecution agreed to withdraw the rape charge from the indictment. Corporal A. was therefore convicted of indecent acts under aggravating circumstances and obstruction of justice.
As part of the plea bargain, it was agreed that the soldier serve one year in prison, be demoted to private, be on probation for 18 months and pay the victim NIS 2,000 (roughly $540) in restitution. A trial for a second defendant also involved in the assault is still ongoing.
The sexual assault occurred last September during an IDF exercise in northern Israel. The victim, a female soldier, slept in the same tent as the two defendants. They were accused of touching her breasts and genitals as she slept without her being aware of it.
Corporal A. was also convicted of trying to obstruct justice after telling the soldier she imagined the attack and tried to convince another soldier who witnessed it to deny the events.
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