A 21-year-old Afghan migrant has been arrested for a mass groping attack and attempted rape against underage girls at a German swimming pool in Schwäbisch Gmünd.
At least four girls aged 12 to 14 were victims of sexual assaults last Saturday afternoon at the swimming pool, where the 21-year-old suspect reportedly groped their buttocks and thighs as well as trying to pull off their bikinis.
In one case, he attempted to penetrate one girl’s vagina with his finger, which police are investigating as a potential rape under the legal definition.
The girls successfully fought the man off before he was arrested by police officers.
The public prosecutor’s office requested an arrest warrant, but the presiding judge suspended it.
Now, the Afghan is free on the streets, with only the condition he not visit any public pools.
German news outlet Tagesschau has reported on the incident has not disclosed that the suspect is an Afghan migrant. This omission fits a pattern at the taxpayer-funded outlet that has been sharply criticized by the right. Other outlets, however, reported his nationality.
The story is very similar to a piece that ran just yesterday by Remix News, in which an Indian migrant sexually assaulted four underage Italian girls at a waterpark in Italy. The Indian migrant committed suicide inside his police cell just 48 hours later.
Last year, nine girls were sexually assaulted at a swimming pool in Germany by Syrian men, fueling national anger over migrant crime.
In 2023, in the German city of Stuttgart, police arrested a 23-year-old Syrian migrant who is accused of groping several women at an outdoor swimming pool over Pentecost weekend.
In total, seven women, ranging from ages 12 to 18, were sexually assaulted at the swimming pool in three different incidents. Three men in total were taken into custody, including a 23-year-old Syrian migrant.
In Cologne in September 2023, eight foreign nationals were arrested for surrounding and sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl in a swimming pool. The girl managed to break free and alert police, who detained the suspects shortly after.
In 2022, three 12-year-old girls were sexually assaulted in the Kaufbeuren public swimming pool in Bavaria by a group of six older teenagers described as having dark skin and speaking broken German. Police are still looking for the suspects.
The internal report stated, “(We) can confirm a surge in sex crimes at these establishments. In particular rape and the sexual abuse of children in bathing establishments have given us grave cause for concern. The perpetrators are, for the most part, immigrants.”
In 2022, violence in German outdoor swimming pools alarmed the Federal Association of German Swimming Champions (BDS) to such an extent that its president, Peter Harzheim, said he could no longer recommend that families visit such facilities on weekends.
While speaking to Bild TV, Harzheim claimed he would be “acting irresponsibly” if he attended an outdoor pool with his own three grandchildren.