NICOSIA, Dec. 13 (Xinhua) — A public outcry over a sentence on a child molester which was considered too light prompted the Attorney General of Cyprus to lodge an appeal on Thursday, asking for a harsher punishment.

The four-year jail sentence imposed by a criminal court on a 48-year-old man who was found guilty on charges of sexual assaults between June 2016 and May 2017, when the girl was 14-15 years old, was criticized by political parties.

The court’s decision was announced on Wednesday.

The Attorney General said in a statement that his appeal was filed as he considered the sentence was insufficient, taking into account the aggravating factors, and asked the court to revise it upward.

Children’s Rights Commissioner Leda Koursoumba denounced the sentence, saying it did not take into account law provisions stating that sexual abuse of a child, who is in a vulnerable condition, due to mental or physical disability, is subject to life imprisonment.

The court had said in its decision that it took into account the man’s clean criminal record and that he had stayed in custody for 18 months before the trial as he was unable to raise the bail money.