The country enacted one of the world's harshest anti-LGBTQ laws in May, prescribing life in prison for same-sex intercourse and the death penalty in certain cases.
It prescribes life in prison for same-sex intercourse. The death penalty can apply in cases deemed “aggravated,” which include repeat offenses, gay sex that transmits terminal illness, or same-sex intercourse with a minor, an elderly person or a person with disabilities.
According to a charge sheet seen by Reuters, the defendant was charged on Aug. 18 with aggravated homosexuality after he “performed unlawful sexual intercourse” with a 41-year-old man. It did not specify why the act was considered aggravated.
