A pediatrician in Germany has been charged with 130 cases of rape and other forms of sexual abuse targeting children, prosecutors said Wednesday.
The unidentified suspect who worked in clinics in Brandenburg state near Berlin allegedly committed the crimes over 12 years, they said in a statement, without specifying how many children were abused.
“The accused is charged with 130 counts of sexual offences” while employed by the healthcare provider Havelland Kliniken, said the Potsdam public prosecutor’s office.
“These include, among other things, allegations of aggravated sexual abuse of children and rape.”
The offences are alleged to have occurred between December 1, 2013 and November 5 of last year.
The prosecutors said “the accused is alleged to have committed a large number of the offences while performing his professional duties” at clinics in Rathenow and Nauen, two towns in Brandenburg.
They said the charges made public on Wednesday had been laid on May 6.
The accused remains in pretrial detention, said the prosecutors, with the case handed over to the regional court in the Brandenburg state capital Potsdam.
Bild daily said the pediatrician, now aged 46, had been arrested in November 2025 after the mother of a female patient in the Rathenow hospital alerted police.
Investigators had then also seized numerous data storage devices.
The alleged offences recall the case in France of a convicted pedophile who practiced as a surgeon for years while repeatedly abusing children in his care.
A French court in May 2025 sentenced retired doctor Joel Le Scouarnec to 20 years in prison after he confessed to sexually abusing or raping 298 patients between 1989 and 2014.
Of those, more than 250 victims were under 15.
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If you or someone you know is struggling with sexual assault or trauma, the following resources are available to support people in crisis:
- Call 911 if you are in immediate danger or fear for your safety.
- The Canadian Association of Sexual Assault Centres' website has a comprehensive list of sexual assault centres in Canada that offer information, advocacy and counselling.
- The Ending Violence Association of Canada‘s website has links to helplines, support services and locations across Canada that offer sexual assault kits.
- Indian Residential School Survivors Society crisis lines: +1 866 925 4419 or +1 800 721 0066 (24/7)
- Toronto Rape Crisis Centre crisis line: +1 416 597 8808 (24/7)
- Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline: +1 833 900 1010 (24/7)
- Trans Lifeline: +1 877 330 6366
- Suicide Crisis Helpline: call or text 988 (24/7)
- Sexual Misconduct Support and Resource Centre for current and former Canadian Armed Forces members: +1 844 750 1648
- Read about your rights as a victim on the Canadian Resource Centre for Victims of Crime website.
