TV presenter sentenced to one year in prison for asking rapist to recreate his crimes on camera with a mannequin

A television presenter in Côte d’Ivoire was sentenced on Wednesday crime of glorifying rape, He asked a convicted rapist on his prime-time show to fake what he does to his victims with a dummy.

Yves de De Mbellea was sentenced to one year’s suspended prison sentence and a fine of 2 million CFA francs (currency of the Ivory Coast) equivalent to approximately 3,619 US dollars.

In addition, the judge banned De Mbellea from leaving Abidjan, the commercial capital of the country, during the year in which his sentence is effective.

The man who appeared on the show was sentenced to two years in prison, a spokesperson for the Ivorian justice system told Reuters.

De Mbella apologized for the segment in which she asked her guest to show how he raped women, helped him adjust the female mannequin and asked if the victims “liked”.

“I sincerely regret having surprised everyone by trying to raise awareness”, Mbella wrote on Facebook. “I made a mistake”.

“I also regret everything that was said or done during this sequence of the program that hurt”, wrote. “I apologize to all the rape victims.”

The controversial segment was broadcast by the private television station Nouvelle Chaîne Ivoirienne (NCI) last Monday, and immediately provoked public outrage.

The presenter had already been notified of a 30-day suspension from his functions by the television channel following a decision by the Independent Communication Council of Côte d’Ivoire.

The De Mbella program was to have a second installment this Friday, September 3, But that was canceled due to the controversy, which has escalated in social media to the point that users have petitioned to cancel the presenter’s program, which has already surpassed 50,000 signatures.

For this, the NCI Network also apologized and canceled the episode and said it in no way validates the rape of women or anyone else as something worthy of an apology.

The court ruling was issued following the controversy that had sparked and followed the presenter’s initial suspension for “to have tolerated rape and attacked the dignity of women ”.

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