A shocking trial is currently rocking Baden-Württemberg: a 35-year-old Islamic religious education teacher is standing trial at Ellwangen Regional Court on serious charges.
According to the prosecution, the man is alleged to have committed a total of 27 offences between 2021 and 2024. Eight boys aged between 12 and 17 are affected. As reported by several media outlets, many of the alleged offences took place in an Islamic boarding school in Giengen an der Brenz.
The defendant worked there as a so-called ‘hoca’ – a religious authority who teaches children the Koran and the Arabic language, among other things. According to broadcaster SWR, no formal academic training is required for this role.
According to the prosecution, the 35-year-old is alleged to have deliberately exploited his position. As reported by Spiegel magazine, he is said to have lured boys into his office by inviting them to film nights. There, he is alleged to have forced them to undergo massages and engage in sexual acts – including oral sex.
The prosecution also accuses him of exerting pressure and silencing the children. His position as a religious authority is said to have played a central role in this.
Physical violence is also among the allegations: according to German news programme Tagesschau 24, some victims were allegedly strangled until they lost consciousness. The prosecution reported that the defendant deliberately inflicted pain on the children and even took pleasure in doing so.
The German national has been in pre-trial detention since mid-January. At the start of the trial, his defence team announced, according to reports, that he would comment on the allegations – though not in public.
The statements from the children involved are also to be heard behind closed doors. A total of eight trial days have been scheduled. A verdict is expected in May.