Barcelona Court Upholds 12-Year Sentence for Violent Anti-Gay Attack

The events date back to October 1, 2016, when the defendant and a convicted minor saw the victim kissing a man in front of a gay bar and mocked him. The assailants pursued the young man to the train station shortly after. A few hours later, the victim encountered the same boys on the beach, who were mocking him again.

While the young man was sleeping on a bench at the station, the defendant and a minor entered to hit him with a stick, threatening to kill him by stoning him for his sexual orientation. The defendant then picked up a large stone and struck the victim in the head, causing him to fall to the ground. He then continued to hit him with stones collected from the tracks. He then kicked the victim in the head, declaring that he would kill him with stones, as they did in his country, Morocco, with "faggots".

The two assailants took the opportunity to steal a cell phone, a charger and various documents, as well as 60 euros in cash belonging to the victim. Unable to take it anymore, the young man attacked had to rush to the tracks where he was rescued by two people, two minutes before the passage of a train. He was suffering from a cranial hemorrhage and had several bruises and injuries to his head and face.

The Civil and Criminal Appeals Section of the High Court of Justice of Catalonia (TSJC) dismissed the defense’s appeal and upheld the 12-year prison sentence for attempted murder and theft, and for homophobic motives, as handed down by the Barcelona Court in March 2018, reports La Vanguardia.