A Prague district court has found former MP Dominik Feri guilty of two counts of rape and one count of attempted rape, sentencing him to three years in prison on Thursday, according to Euractiv.

The 26-year-old one-time TOP 09 party (EPP) member appealed against the decision, telling reporters he was disappointed by the verdict and hoped the appeals court would have a different opinion.

The trial of the former MP, once the youngest deputy in the Czech lower house, began in February and has attracted much media attention in the Czech Republic. Feri has consistently denied the rape charges, saying that the encounters had been consensual, although conceding that his behaviour may have been “inappropriate” at times.

Feri, who was highly influential on social media, particularly among the younger generation, was expected to help the party attract young voters to the general election in the autumn of 2021. Approximately six months before the election, the media reported accusations of sexual assault and improper conduct brought forward by several women.

The testimonies of several women who claimed that Feri had forced them to have sex against their will were published by Denik N together with A2larm. Others confided that he had asked them for nude photos. One of the victims was 17.

Although Feri’s defence later tried to characterise the women’s testimony as unreliable, the court took a different view.

Feri also hurt his own cause as he treated the victims with contempt, laughing out loud at their testimony and showing no sign of remorse, the judge in the case said.