Venezuela's attorney general announced on Friday that a man has been sentenced to more than 17 years in prison for detaining and sexually assaulting a woman for 31 years.
Matías Salazar was arrested in January 2020 and sentenced to 17 years and two months in prison for "sexual violence, threats and psychological violence," Venezuelan Attorney General Tarek William Saab wrote on Twitter.
He said the man "kept one of his victims captive for more than 30 years in order to sexually assault her."
The story sent shockwaves through Venezuela after a woman known as Morella León fled the apartment where she had been held for 31 years in a village near the city of Maracay (central northern Venezuela).
Local media said the assailant forced her to have sex with him in exchange for food and water.
Local media reported that another woman – who had been Matias Salazar's life partner for 23 years and gave birth to a daughter – reported the man to authorities shortly after Leon escaped, accusing him of psychological abuse and demanding his deportation.