Coach convicted of sexual abuse evades prison term and is wanted internationally
A former climbing coach at Riga's "Daugmale" children and youth centre, sentenced to eight years in prison for sexual violence against a minor trainee, vanished after the ruling took effect and is now subject to an international search. Court data show that since 2022 a search has been declared in roughly one in seven cases in Latvia.
A conviction in Latvia has become final, but the convicted man is not serving it. The former climbing coach of the Riga children and youth centre "Daugmale", sentenced to eight years in prison for sexual violence against an underage trainee, has left the country and is subject to an international search, Latvian Television reports. Police have still not found him. The case points to a wider issue: Latvian courts regularly have to decide on declaring defendants and convicts wanted.
The verdict and sentence
Last summer the Riga City Court found the coach guilty of sexual violence against an underage trainee. One offence was committed in Estonia, the other in Italy. Judge Gunta Sokolova imposed nine years in prison, five years of probation supervision and a three-year ban on conducting any kind of classes for children.
The coach appealed. This spring the Riga Regional Court partly changed the ruling, reducing the prison term to eight years and the probation period by one year. The verdict took effect immediately, but the coach disappeared. Two months later he was declared wanted, and because police had information he might be in Lithuania, the search became international. A European arrest warrant was issued on 8 July this year.
Why no arrest was ordered
The appeal was heard in a written procedure, so the coach did not appear in court. Riga Regional Court judge Ģirts Aizsils explained that only the type and length of the punishment were appealed, the defendant had admitted guilt and expressed remorse, so there was no basis to revisit the preventive measures. The coach was only required to report changes of residence and was barred from certain work.
Kristīne Strada-Rozenberga, head of the Criminal Law Sciences Department at the University of Latvia's Faculty of Law, said the appellate court also had the right to impose a preventive measure and that an admission of guilt is not a decisive factor.
Statistics
Since 2022, judges have ruled more than 5,000 times on declaring people wanted; not all are still being sought. On average 13.4% of cases, or one in seven, involved a person being declared wanted. The highest share is at the Latgale District Court, with a similar share at the Riga City Court. The number of such rulings falls each year. Strada-Rozenberga believes the data reflect defendants' attitude toward trials rather than the courts' ability to secure participation.
