Man in Panama Sentenced to 22 Years for Rape and Robbery

A 26-year-old man, charged with rape and aggravated robbery, was sentenced to 22 years in prison after the parties agreed to the sentence during a guarantees control hearing. The change in precautionary measure meant provisional detention for both defendants. In July 2025, in the district of La Chorrera, in the company of a third subject, who remains detained, they sexually abused a 17-year-old minor. As an accessory penalty, the Guarantees judge established a prohibition on the convicted person from holding public office for the same term as the main penalty. The Regional Prosecutor's Office of West Panama, through the Section of Crimes against Freedom and Sexual Integrity, managed to present during the hearing evidence that led the defendant to declare himself criminally responsible. Between October and December 2024, the now-convicted man, using violent methods and intimidation and using a firearm, entered the homes of two women in the district of La Chorrera, stealing valuable objects and raping one of them. In another case, later, in an appeal hearing, the Appeals Court canceled the periodic reporting and house arrest measures for two young men, 20 and 21 years old, accused of aggravated rape.