Prague, Feb 14 (CTK) – The case of Qatari Prince Hamid bin Abdal Thani, who was convicted of sexual abuse of underage girls in the Czech Republic, has been closed by courts, Thani is no longer prosecuted or subject to an international arrest warrant, public Czech Radio reported on its website on Sunday.
Last October, a Prague district court sentenced Thani in absentia to 11 months and eight days in prison for sexual abuse, procuring, threatening the moral education of youth and seduction. The sentence covers the time Thani spent in Czech custody before being extradited to Qatar.
Thani, a member of the Qatari royal family, was also expelled from the Czech Republic indefinitely.
The verdict took effect on December 22, 2015, court spokeswoman Marcela Proellerova said.
“None of the parties in dispute appealed it. The defence counsel of the defendant received the resolution on the court proceedings costs in January,” she added.
Thani was accused of repeated sexual contacts with school girls from 2000 until his detention in a Prague flat in 2004. Most of the girls came from broken families and their education was largely neglected. They said at court Thani had paid them 2000 crowns for intercourse.
No valid verdict was issued in the case of Thani then because he was released to Qatar in August 2006 based on a ruling by former justice minister Pavel Nemec.
On his arrival back home, Thani was arrested, but he was released on bail after two days.
In 2007, a Qatar prosecutor stopped the prosecution and no charges were brought against Thani in his homeland. Qatar said Thani had already been sufficiently punished with the 340-day custody in the Czech Republic and refused to deal with the case again.
The case was reopened in the Czech Republic because the Municipal Court in Prague had abolished the original verdict in a closed hearing and returned the case for appraisal.
Thani then sent a message from Qatar saying he agreed with proceedings to be held in his absence. An international warrant for the arrest of Thani was issued in 2011, on the basis of which he could be arrested if he left his homeland.
Thani was originally charged with having paid sex with 15 girls, four of whom were underage.
However, after former president Vaclav Klaus declared an amnesty in January 2013, courts had to stop the criminal proceedings for six out of the total of 15 deeds because they started more than eight years prior to the amnesty.
