A joint investigation team set up by local authorities in Weishi County, Central China’s?Henan?Province, said in a statement on Sunday that it is paying high attention to the molestation of a girl by an alleged public official, and will investigate the case and deal with the violation according to law and regulations. Photo: Sina Weibo

A joint investigation team set up by local authorities in Weishi County, Central China'sHenanProvince, said in a statement on Sunday that it is paying high attention to the molestation of a girl by an alleged public official, and will investigate the case and deal with the violation according to law and regulations.

Earlier, an alleged public official who molested a girl was only held in administrative detention for nine days, which went viral online and sparked discussion among netizens that the sentence was too light.

"How can victims, especially minors, be protected if offenders are only held in administrative detention for nine days after their lives are ruined?" asked a netizen on the Chinese social media platform Sina Weibo.

Zhao Meng (pseudonym), a girl just over 14 years old, was molested by a 47-year-old man surnamed Jia at a supermarket in front of her neighborhood on the evening of October 29. Footage from inside the store showed Jia kissing the girl, touching her breast and even trying to drag the girl into a room.

"My daughter struggled several times to break free, and I still can't believe that such a thing would happen to my child," the girl's mother said. "Jia and my husband even knew each other. I didn't expect he would do such bad things."

The girl's parents reported the case to the police at 10 pm on October 29. "The police told me that it was a criminal case when I made the report at the police station that night," Zhao Ze (pseudonym), the girl's father, said, adding that they trusted the police to handle the case.

However, on the afternoon of October 30, someone found him and said that Jia wanted to pay 20,000 yuan for the case to be dropped. "This is a criminal crime against minors, I do not accept the settlement and the case should be handled in accordance with laws and regulations," Zhao noted.

The turning point came on October 31, when the Weishi County Public Security Bureau issued a decision on administrative punishment showing that the evidence Jia's indecent acts against the girl were conclusive, and decided to put him in administrative detention for nine days.

The girl's family expressed dissatisfaction and anger over the result, with Zhao saying Jia was a public servant in a county government unit and his wife saying on the day of the incident that Jia was not a first-time offender and should be given a heavier punishment.

Zhao said he applied for an administrative review with the police as soon as he learned of the result, but it was not accepted, and he also lodged an objection with the local government.

"I once again referred to the administrative review and the police did not refuse this time, I hope Jia will receive the punishment he deserves," said Zhao.

A criminal expert said that the molestation of a minor female is a serious crime. In addition, it can be identified as subjective vicious and has serious social harm if Jia's molestation lasted for 3 minutes, and the girl struggled five or six times but was repeatedly forced by Jia as well as the suspect had a previous history of molestation.

The girl's parents said the incident had a huge impact on their daughter, who was psychologically injured and often woke up from nightmares. In addition, the hospital's diagnosis revealed that the girl is currently in a state of moderate depression.

Criminal experts said it's a serious crime since the victim was molested and will have to endure indelible psychological scars. Combined with other case details, it should be determined that Jia has committed a crime of indecency, rather than an administrative violation.

In addition, experts also pointed out that if it is confirmed that Jia is indeed a public official, his place of employment should seriously deal with his illegal and criminal behavior in accordance with relevant regulations, experts noted.

Global Times