Parents jailed for buying son 13-year-old bride

A Bosnian couple who arranged a 13-year-old bride for their mentally disabled son were sentenced to five years in jail by an Austrian court for abetting the sexual abuse of a minor.

The parents, both 44 and residents of Austria for 26 years, had paid the poverty-stricken Bosnian girl's parents 2,500 euros ($3,400) in 2011 to arrange the marriage to their 17-year-old son, the Korneuburg prosecutors' spokesman said on Wednesday.

The girl shared a bedroom with her husband at the family home in the town of Gaenserndorf, near Vienna, became pregnant within weeks and went back home to have the child.

The accused told the court they were unaware they were breaking the law but pleaded guilty. They have lodged an appeal.

 

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