Teenage girl who live-streamed her friend, 17, being raped after getting her drunk is jailed for just nine months
Marina Lonina, 19, pleaded guilty to one count of obstructing justice as part of a plea agreement
A TEENAGE girl who live-streamed images of her friend getting raped by a man has been jailed for nine months.
Marina Lonina, 19, was sentenced in Columbus, Ohio, on Monday after pleading guilty to obstructing justice under a deal with prosecutors.
Initially, Lonina faced 40 years in prison for charges of rape, kidnap, and sexual battery - but she pleaded not guilty to all counts.
With the guilty plea to obstructing justice, Lonina admitted that she failed to report the rape to police or turn over any evidence following the incident.
The rape of her then 17-year-old friend, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was allegedly filmed while using the social media app Periscope last February.
The victim, who is now 18-year-old, alleged that Lonina had set up the rape.
She claimed: “I was too gullible to see how manipulative she truly is."
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Lonina and her friend allegedly met Raymond B. Gates, 29, while they were out shopping.
The next day, they went to his apartment where, according to a prosecutor, they “drank alcohol until the victim was heavily intoxicated”.
Gates then forced himself on the victim while Lonina filmed through the app.
Gates was sentenced in October to nine years in prison after pleading guilty to one count of rape in the case.
When Lonina was first arrested last year, the case was thrown into question as to weather she deserved the same punishment as Gates — despite having no physical involvement.
During the initial hearing, Lonina’s defence lawyer said she continued to livestream the rape of her teenage friend on Periscope because she “got caught up in the likes” the video was receiving and would often film everything using the app.
Lonina was allegedly "giggling and laughing" as she used her phone to film the February 2016 assault.
The victim was said to be clearly screaming "stop" and "no" during the sexual assault.
In a victim impact statement, the young woman said she has since suffered from panic attacks.
It comes as sick paedos appear to be using live streaming app Periscope to groom vulnerable children online.
Owned by social media giant Twitter, the mobile app has 10 million users and has a minimum age restriction of 13.
But a video shown to the shows a girl aged around seven or eight being exploited by a depraved gang of sexual predators.
The disturbing clip shows the little girl interacting with the older users while her mother sits close by.
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