One man has been jailed for five months, three suspended, and 11 others given community service sentences for having sex with a 16-year-old girl in a hotel room in Valkenburg last year.

One man was found not guilty by the court in Maastricht because of a lack of evidence.

The public prosecution department had called for sentences of up to one year. The man who was jailed had deliberately looked for a ‘young and inexperienced’ girl, the court said. ‘So he took the risk that he would end up with a minor,’ judges said in a statement.

The girl, known in court as Kimberly, disappeared from her home in October last year and was found by police having sex with a man in a motel in December.

Earlier this month, two other men were jailed and 10 others given community service sentences ranging from 180 to 240 hours. The girl’s 21-year-old pimp has been jailed for two years.

According to broadcaster Nos, the public prosecution department is to appeal against the sentences, which it says are not long enough.