Court in Molde reexamines appeal of 19-year-old convicted of gang rape

A 19-year-old man who appealed a conviction showed no visible reaction during a harrowing trial in Molde earlier this summer. He was found guilty of participating in the gang rape of a girl under 14 years old outside the Molde Cathedral in broad daylight. Recently, he appealed his five-year prison sentence. This week, the Frostating Court of Appeal is revisiting the question of the length of his sentence and the amount he must pay in damages to the young victim.

The assault involved a group of five boys who attacked the girl in Molde last summer. Only the two oldest were deemed old enough for punishment. After the judgment earlier this year, both appealed on all grounds. However, the Court of Appeal rejected most of the appeal, concluding that there was no doubt regarding what transpired on the church steps in Molde. As a result, the appeal, originally scheduled to last for eight days, will now only take two days. The victim’s attorney expressed relief that most of the lower court’s ruling stands, sparing the victim from a complete retrial.

The defense for the 19-year-old, Axel Lange, emphasized that the young men had experienced a difficult start in life, having been in Norway for a short time with limited understanding of the language, culture, and societal norms. Lange argued that the 19-year-old was too afraid to stop the assault, despite believing it was wrong. The Court will reassess whether he should be sentenced to five years in prison and ordered to pay damages to the victim. An 18-year-old involved in the case has already been sentenced to 5.5 years in prison and will not have his case retried. Two days are allocated for this appeal process.