Posted by
InchDeep on Monday, May 12, 2008 6:22:45 PM
Published: 11 May 08 00:30 CET
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/11676/
A 40-year-old man from Östersund in northern Sweden was convicted on
Friday on three counts of sexual molestation for satisfying himself on
the saddles of women’s bicycles.
The man confessed that in three separate cases, he slashed the tires of
bicycles belonging to women he found attractive, and then proceeded to
rub up against the bicycle seats for sexual gratification, reports the Östersunds-Posten (ÖP) newspaper.
He claimed that he was suffering from a confused state of mind following a separation in the spring of 2007.
According to the newspaper, the court stated during the hearings that
one of the victims had lived in fear for months on account of the
unknown stalker repeatedly masturbating on her bicycle within sight of
her home.
In addition to the three cases to which the man confessed, prosecutors
had charged the 40-year-old in five other cases of bicycle tire
slashing.
However, the man denied any further vandalism, and a lack of evidence led the court to acquit the man of the additional charges.
While the conviction warranted a sentence of up to several months in
prison, the court reduced the punishment on account of the man’s clean
record, the fact that he had already spent time in custody during the
investigation, and his decision to seek professional help for his
behaviour.
In addition to receiving probation, the man was ordered to pay 10,000
kronor ($1,665) in fines, as well as 3,000 kronor in damages to each of
the women whose bicycles he assaulted.