The fourth chapter in Girona centers on a stepfather accused of exploiting his partner’s daughter for four years, starting when the girl was 12 and continuing until she was 16. The alleged abuse occurred at the family home in Girona, where the child lived with her mother and her older sister. The defendant faces a lengthy prison sentence, with charges tied to ongoing sexual abuse of a minor.
Experts recognize post-traumatic stress in the young woman and note how the man leveraged his paternal position.
The court heard that the relationship began to deteriorate over the first two years. The victim described the accused as someone she trusted deeply. Most encounters happened in the double room, and her older sister was often at home. A receipt was reportedly placed on the door as a signal to prevent entry. The mother, according to testimony, was frequently away when the sexual activity occurred, which, at first, happened nearly every day.
The young woman described plans for the future, saying, “We wanted to marry and have children.” But starting at age 14, she began a relationship with someone else and no longer wished to be with her stepfather. She also felt pressure to stay in the relationship, with the man allegedly threatening to leave the home and insisting, “you only have me.”
Her sense of trust in the stepfather made it harder to break away, and she says she wanted to maintain some form of contact without resuming the relationship. She recalled that the man sometimes threatened to harm her mother if she did not agree to continue seeing him. “I didn’t realize what was happening,” she told investigators, “I wanted to be with him even though I knew it wasn’t good for me.”
“Power Dynamics at Play”
The case came into sharper focus in 2019 when the victim connected with a boy online. For a period, she received gifts from the person, allegedly funded by the accused in exchange for sexual activities. The exchange continued until the victim left home to meet the online contact, which culminated in a complaint and a broader disclosure of the events. The sequence of events pointed to a pattern of coercion and control within the family setting.
The defendant, for her part, denies having sexual relations with the victim and denies that the room was kept secure to prevent discovery. She suggests the victim felt betrayed by his absence during a critical moment, which led her to report the alleged abuse. In her defense, there is a lack of corroborating evidence proving the abusive acts occurred as claimed.
Experts highlighted the severity of the victim’s trauma, noting strong post-traumatic stress symptoms and multiple suicide attempts. They characterized the relationship with the stepfather as a clear power dynamic, where the adult held control, and the minor assumed a role akin to a dependent child within the household. This dynamic, according to clinical assessments, amplified the harm and complicated the victim’s ability to seek help or exit the relationship.