Malaga court sentences man to eleven years in prison for sexually assaulting brother's ex-wife

The provincial court of Malaga has sentenced the man who continuously sexually assaulted his brother's ex-wife to eleven years in prison.

SUR spoke to the 30-year-old victim last year. She preferred to remain anonymous. For the purpose of this article, we will call her María.

María is one of the women who spoke to SUR on 25 November 2025 (International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women), after her ex-partner breached a restraining order.

María was facing another legal battle at the time. She had reported her former brother-in-law for abusing her for four months. Now, the courts have ruled in her favour, sentencing the defendant to prison for repeated sexual assault.

Originally from Colombia, she moved to Malaga in 2022. Her husband's brother had convinced them to move for the opportunities that Spain offers, so María settled with her partner and daughter in the province.

With tears and rage in her eyes, María told SUR that her brother-in-law started abusing her after their arrival. Although she told her husband, things didn't change much. Far from showing remorse, the suspect sent her husband an audio message proposing to "make her disappear".

According to the court ruling, the first incident happened in August 2022, when the defendant allegedly touched María in the kitchen of the house they shared, taking advantage of the fact that the rest of the family was asleep. María then managed to push him away and he left.

Two months later, however, the defendant took María by the arm and dragged her to one of the bedrooms where he sexually assaulted her. There was nobody in the house at that moment.

Despite María's resistance and consistent denial of consent, he reportedly abused her on three more occasions.

María reported him to the police on 2 December 2022. She hadn't done it until then because her abuser had threatened to kick her and her daughter out of the house. María didn't have the financial capacity to leave and pay rent at the time.

The court has now also issued another restraining order, this time banning the former brother-in-law from approaching María within 500 metres. He will be under supervised release for five years once he gets out of prison. The court has also ordered him to compensate the victim with 12,000 euros.

The provincial court has based the conviction on the consistency of the victim's testimony. She maintained the same version of events from the initial complaint to the trial.

Conversely, the court noted that the defendant changed his story throughout the proceedings, claiming for the first time in court that she reported him after he had demanded the money she owed him for bringing her and her family from Colombia.

Forensic experts have corroborated María's account. They confirmed that the victim suffered from a post-traumatic stress disorder stemming from the reported events.

The defendant can still appeal the sentence before the High Court of Justice of Andalucía. For this reason, he remains free for the time being.

María's lawyer has requested that the court confiscate his passport and ban him from leaving Spain, stating that there is a risk of flight.

Victims, their family members and witnesses who want to report gender-based violence can do so by contacting the 061 helpline, which is available 24 hours a day in 52 different languages. The call is free and does not appear on the phone bill. Incidents can also be reported by emailing 016-online@igualdad.gob.es.

Alternatively, there is also the WhatsApp chat at 600000016. In an emergency, the National Police (091), the Local Police (092) and the Guardia Civil (062) provide immediate assistance.

If someone is unable to make a call, they can use the ALERTCOPS app, which sends a geolocation alert to the police.