Police seek victims of sexual abuse at Charles University's Faculty of Science
Prague criminal investigators are examining a possible crime at the Faculty of Science of Charles University from 2000–2025 and are appealing to other victims to come forward on line 158.
Criminal investigators launch criminal proceedings at Charles University's Faculty of Science
Prague police are searching for further possible victims of sexual abuse at the Faculty of Science of Charles University. As Deník.cz reported, criminal investigators are examining conduct that may have occurred between 2000 and 2025. Victims can contact the emergency line 158.
"On the basis of information published in the media, we have begun to address the case and criminal investigators have launched criminal proceedings on suspicion of a criminal offence," said police spokeswoman Eva Kropáčová in a statement to the Czech News Agency.
At the centre of the case is biologist, philosopher and writer Stanislav Komárek, who served as a professor at the Faculty of Science of Charles University. Deník N reported in summer that Komárek left the faculty at the beginning of last year after a younger colleague filed a complaint. According to this colleague's account, the professor persuaded him to take a drug and subsequently forced him into sexual intercourse. Komárek denies accusations of sexual or abuse of power.
The Faculty of Science issued a statement in August explaining the circumstances of Komárek's departure. According to it, the faculty terminated the professor's employment contract after receiving a complaint. However, the person who filed the complaint did not wish to pursue the case through official channels, namely through the ombudsperson or the faculty's ethics committee. "It was the only and most effective measure that the department could unilaterally take to provide immediate protection to members of the academic community," the school emphasised.
The faculty simultaneously declared that its primary objective is to maintain a safe and respectful environment for students and staff. "We regard any form of sexualised violence, abuse of power or other unethical conduct as absolutely unacceptable," concluded representatives of the Faculty of Science of Charles University.
Source: Deník.cz