The Horsens Court on Monday sentenced two young men to prison for a violent hate crime against two women near Horsens station in January. One of them was also expelled from Denmark.
An 18-year-old man and a 17-year-old boy were convicted of gross violence committed as a hate crime, DR reports. The court found that the attack was wholly or partly motivated by the two women’s sexuality.
The assault happened at night near Horsens Banegård on 17 January 2026. According to a press release from Sydøstjyllands Politi, the two convicted shouted insults about the women’s sexual orientation. They also struck the women several times in and around the head with a totenschläger and exposed them to pepper spray.
The 18-year-old was sentenced to one year and three months in prison. He was additionally convicted of violence against a man in Horsens nightlife on 4 January 2026. The court expelled him from Denmark with a six-year entry ban, and he was remanded in custody after the verdict.
The 17-year-old received 10 months in prison for his role in the assault on the two women. TV2 Østjylland reports that both youths were convicted of gross violence committed as a hate crime, based on the police press release. The outlet notes that the case involved several episodes of violence with the same defendants.
The trial also covered a separate incident on 2 January 2026 in Vitus Beringsparken in Horsens. A man was subjected to violence there and threatened with a knife, and the 18-year-old and a third defendant, also 18, were convicted for that attack. As reported by B.T., the third defendant received three months in prison and a warning of expulsion.
That defendant has accepted the district court verdict, according to the police. The two others are considering whether to appeal their sentences.
Prosecutor points to the hate crime element
Prosecutor Thomas Vestergaard said in the police press release that the verdict underlines that citizens must not be discriminated against or subjected to violence because of their sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression or similar. His statement was cited by DR, B.T. and TV2 Østjylland.
Hate crime classification in Danish law allows courts to treat the motive as an aggravating circumstance when setting a sentence. In this case, Retten i Horsens categorised the January assault on the two women as a hate crime, according to the press release from Sydøstjyllands Politi.
The case is being reported now because the verdict was delivered on Monday 24 August 2026, concluding the proceedings over the January assaults. DR, B.T. and TV2 Østjylland all published their accounts the same day, based on the police press release issued after the ruling.
