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Expat wrongly imprisoned in Spain for rape hits out at police
| Published: | 27 Nov at 6 PM |
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Tagged: Spain, The Netherlands
A Dutch expat jailed in Spain for 12 years on a rape charge is hitting out at local police after a British man confessed to the rapes after being convicted of murder.
Romano van der Dussen spent an agonising 12 years in a Spanish prison for rapes he did not commit, and has told of brutal beatings due to the nature of his alleged crimes. The miscarriage of justice also meant he missed seeing his daughter grow up after his sentencing in 2003 to 15 years in prison on two counts of rape. His sentence was passed despite his DNA not being a match for the DNA found on one victim, and his daughter was just three years old when he was locked up after being wrongly identified by one of the rape victims.
The mistake was found when Briton Mark Dixie was convicted of stabbing, raping and murdering model Sally Anne Bowman in London. Dixie later admitted to more attacks including rapes in Spain, with investigations proving his guilt by matching his DNA to that found on the victim Romano had been accused of raping. The wrongly-convicted Dutchman was at the court in London where Dixie was jailed for 28 years after admitting several other new offences during interrogation in 2O15.
Even although his Spanish conviction has been quashed, Romano can’t forget his years in prison, where he was attacked and beaten up by fellow-prisoners in full view of the guards because he was believed to be a rapist. During those years, his mother died without the comfort of knowing he would be proven innocent, and he was not allowed to go to her funeral. He told reporters his entire life was taken from him, adding he can never get those years back, but is attempting to stay positive and live the years he has left.
He strongly believes Sally Anne would still be alive if the Spanish police had acted correctly rather than simply blaming him for the rapes even although he’d been in Torremolinos with two British friends when they took place. The police didn't bother to interview his friends to confirm his story.
Romano van der Dussen spent an agonising 12 years in a Spanish prison for rapes he did not commit, and has told of brutal beatings due to the nature of his alleged crimes. The miscarriage of justice also meant he missed seeing his daughter grow up after his sentencing in 2003 to 15 years in prison on two counts of rape. His sentence was passed despite his DNA not being a match for the DNA found on one victim, and his daughter was just three years old when he was locked up after being wrongly identified by one of the rape victims.
The mistake was found when Briton Mark Dixie was convicted of stabbing, raping and murdering model Sally Anne Bowman in London. Dixie later admitted to more attacks including rapes in Spain, with investigations proving his guilt by matching his DNA to that found on the victim Romano had been accused of raping. The wrongly-convicted Dutchman was at the court in London where Dixie was jailed for 28 years after admitting several other new offences during interrogation in 2O15.
Even although his Spanish conviction has been quashed, Romano can’t forget his years in prison, where he was attacked and beaten up by fellow-prisoners in full view of the guards because he was believed to be a rapist. During those years, his mother died without the comfort of knowing he would be proven innocent, and he was not allowed to go to her funeral. He told reporters his entire life was taken from him, adding he can never get those years back, but is attempting to stay positive and live the years he has left.
He strongly believes Sally Anne would still be alive if the Spanish police had acted correctly rather than simply blaming him for the rapes even although he’d been in Torremolinos with two British friends when they took place. The police didn't bother to interview his friends to confirm his story.
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