Moroccan Fugitive Sentenced to 20 Years for Toddler’s Death in Belgium

Little Théa died on her second birthday, after being beaten by Mounir Kiouh, her stepfather. The man was sentenced in 2011 at first instance to 15 years in prison. He appealed the decision, but before the trial was held, he fled to Morocco, according to RTL.

Long wanted, he was finally located in Tetouan in 2018 by Théa’s family. The girl’s relatives go to the Moroccan city and file a complaint against him. The suspect was apprehended three days later and brought before the Moroccan judge who declared himself competent. "According to Article 707 of the Moroccan Penal Code, any Moroccan national who commits a crime abroad but has not been definitively tried, can be tried in his country for the same act. It is this article that saved us," says Karine Gramtine, Théa’s aunt.

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In detention for two years in Morocco, Mounir Kiouh has just been sentenced to 20 years in prison by the Moroccan justice system for intentional violence causing death without intent. He had been tried for the same charges in Belgium. "He simply denied the facts he was accused of. Faced with this negative attitude, we had thoroughly studied the file and cornered him with nine irrefutable pieces of evidence," says Semlali Brahim, a lawyer at the Tangier bar.

To read: Belgium Remembers Loubna Benaïssa: 25 Years Since Discovery of Missing Child’s Body

Théa’s family is pleased that justice has finally been served. "I am happy because we did a titanic job to get there. It’s a long-term job. It’s suffering for our family too. Because each time our back and forth, for our family it was quite heavy," says Karine. "The relief comes, but very slowly, very slowly. I thank the Moroccan justice system ten thousand times," adds Claude, Théa’s grandfather, for his part.