Nobel Prize academy member convicted of rape

THE man at the centre of a sex-abuse and financial crimes scandal that is tarnishing the academy that awards the Nobel Prize in Literature was convicted of rape and sentenced to two years in prison yesterday.

Jean-Claude Arnault, a major cultural figure in Sweden, had faced two counts of rape of a woman in 2011.

He was found guilty of one rape, but was acquitted of the other because the victim said she was asleep and judges said her account wasn’t reliable. The ruling was unanimous.

Judge Gudrun Antemar said the role of the court was to decide whether the prosecutor had proven the charges beyond a reasonable doubt.

“The court’s conclusion is that the evidence is enough to find the defendant guilty of one of the events,” she said.

In Sweden, rape is punishable by a minimum of two years and a maximum of six years in prison.

Prosecutor Christina Voigt had demanded three years in prison for Arnault.

There were no immediate comments from Voigt or Arnault’s lawyer, Bjorn Hurtig, who earlier had said they would appeal if he was convicted.

Arnault denied the charges, which have rocked the prestigious academy, with seven members either being forced to leave or quitting in April.

In May, the academy said no prize would be awarded this year.

Arnault, a French citizen, is married to poet and former Swedish Academy member Katarina Frostenson. She quit in April at the same time as former permanent secretary Sara Danius.

Arnault also has been suspected of violating century-old Nobel rules by leaking names of winners of the award.

All the allegations have shredded the academy’s credibility, called into question its judgment and the scandal has sparked a debate over how to face up to its flaws. It has divided the body’s 18 members – who are appointed for life – into hostile camps and prompted seven members to leave or disassociate themselves from it. |