CHHAY CHANNYDA
phnompenhost
R
USSIAN paedophile Alexander Trofimov’s jail sentence has been slashed to eight years after Appeal Court judges decided yesterday to consolidate three child-sex counts into a single charge.
Trofimov, 42, was arrested in Sihanoukville in October 2007 and was sentenced to a total of 17 years in prison on multiple charges of abusing as many as 17 children since the previous year.
Last week he confessed to two of the crimes, apologised to his victims and their families and asked for a third to be dropped during the appeal process.
His defence lawyer, Saing Vannak, asked that the court merge the two remaining charges.
In handing down the reduced sentence yesterday, Appeal Court Judge Seng Sivutha said that all three charges would be consolidated into a single charge of purchasing child prostitution.
“Alexander Trofimov did confess and apologised to his victims for what he did wrong, because he lacked knowledge of Cambodian tradition and laws,” he said.
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