The officer was initially convicted by a district court in January on charges including two counts of child rape, sexual abuse of children, exploitation of children for sexual posing, and child pornography offenses. The district court had sentenced him to five years in prison and ordered him to pay damages to the victims.
The Court of Appeal upheld the convictions but increased the sentence to five years and six months. Appeal Court Judge Carina Sjögren said the sentence was raised "because it concerns serious sexual crimes against several children." The court also increased the damages for violation for almost all victims, assessing that the compensation should be "slightly higher" due to the nature and duration of the acts.
The Court of Appeal increases the sentence because it concerns serious sexual crimes against several children.
The officer contacted the children via Snapchat, using a false name and claiming to be younger than his actual age. He remotely induced the children to perform sexual poses or acts on themselves, which were photographed or filmed either by him or the children. The material was saved, sometimes without the children's knowledge. The victims were boys aged 11 to just under 15, with several far from the age of sexual self-determination. One unknown boy, apparently very young, was also targeted.
The exact amount of damages awarded has not been disclosed.
The nature and duration of the acts have also been such that the Court of Appeal assesses that the compensation for violation that the children are entitled to should be set slightly higher than the compensation that the district court has determined.