Process against Dortmund: The city shocks abuse!

At the Dortmund district court, the trial against a 53-year-old man began on January 10, 2025. The defendant is suspected of having sexually abused the eleven-year-old daughter of his former partner in at least nine cases, such as Radio 91.2 reported .

The public prosecutor accuses the man of having committed sexual violence on the child for the first time in March 2020. At that time, the family lived in a shared apartment in the eastern city center of Dortmund. The last attack is said to have taken place in May 2023. The girl's mother has now separated from the accused. A judgment is expected at the end of February 2025 at the earliest. If the accused does not confess, the girl would have to testify as a witness.

Current developments on sexual violence

In a current report by the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), increasing number of cases of sexual offenses against children and adolescents were documented. In particular, there is an increase in the areas of sexual abuse of minors and the manufacture, distribution, acquisition and possession of child and youth pornographic content, such as The BKA announced .

In 2023, a total of 16,375 cases of sexual abuse of children were registered, which corresponds to an increase of 5.5 % compared to the previous year. Children under the age of 14 are particularly affected in which 18,497 cases were registered (7.7 % increase). Over 50 % of the cases have a preliminary relationship between victims and suspect, and around three quarters of the victims are female. The report underlines the need to further intensify measures against sexualized violence on children and create protection standards in digital space.