Bergisch Gladbach complex abuse: defendant sentenced to twelve years in prison

He raped his daughter and recorded videos: In the Bergisch Gladbach abuse complex, a central defendant was sentenced to twelve years in prison. The Cologne Regional Court also ordered preventive detention.

At the Bergisch Gladbach abuse complex, a central defendant was sentenced to twelve years in prison. The Cologne Regional Court found the 43-year-old father guilty of repeatedly abusing his daughter, who was born in 2017. The court also ordered that the trained cook and hotel specialist be placed in pre-trial detention.

The charges against the man were based primarily on photographs and videos he had taken of the crime. The prosecutor said that he specifically used the times when his wife was not at home.

The case has national proportions

The defendant had commented on the accusations during the trial, but behind closed doors. The lawyer who represented the daughter had submitted the corresponding application. I wanted to protect the girl.

The convict is considered a key figure in Bergisch Gladbach’s abuse complex. The search at his home revealed not only large amounts of child pornography, but also many contacts with like-minded men who exchanged videos and images of serious child sexual abuse online. Little by little, investigators were able to track down more and more suspects, similar to a pyramid scheme. The case has now assumed national proportions.

Two perpetrators are serving prison terms

According to the Cologne prosecutor’s office, there were 201 suspects in the Bergisch Gladbach complex in North Rhine-Westphalia alone. Two perpetrators are serving prison terms and seven suspects are in custody. Since its founding in November, the responsible research group “Berg” has transmitted 105 reports to the authorities of the 16 federal states.

The Bergisch Gladbach abuse complex is just one of three major abuse rounds that North Rhine-Westphalia investigators have tracked over the past year and a half. A network at a campsite in Lügde that had gone undiscovered for years reached the public in January 2019. The case of around 40 affected children is considered one of the biggest abuse scandals of recent decades. In June this year, investigators also discovered a network of pedagogical criminals in Münster.