A verdict is handed out to media at Uppsala District Court, Uppsala, Sweden Thursday Nov. 30, 2017. A court in Sweden has sentenced a Swedish man to 10 years in prison for coercing teenagers in Canada, Britain and the United States to perform sexual acts in front of webcams by threatening them or their families. The Uppsala City Court said Thursday that Bjorn Samstrom was guilty of online sexual offenses against 27 children between 2015 and early 2017.(Akvelina Smed/TT via AP)
December 01, 2017 - 4:50 AM
COPENHAGEN - A Swede convicted of rape over the internet after coercing teenagers in Canada, Britain and the United States to perform sexual acts in front of webcams, will appeal the verdict.
Defence lawyer Kronje Samuelsson says that Bjorn Samstrom "has been convicted in a way that we do not think is correct."
On Thursday, a court found Samstrom, 41, guilty of online sexual offences against 27 children between 2015 and early 2017 after threatening to post photos of his victims on porn sites or kill their relatives unless they performed for him. He denies rape.
The prosecution says one of those convictions pertained to a Canadian girl who was 13 at the time.
Samstrom has admitted making contact with the children, but claims he cannot recollect asking them to perform for him.
His conviction for online rape was the first of its type in Sweden.
News from © The Associated Press, 2017