19-year-old from Trier held on remand for inciting murder and terror offences
Federal prosecutors are investigating a 19-year-old from the Trier area who is suspected of inciting murder, arson and sexual abuse via chat.
Federal prosecutors assume proceedings against alleged ringleader
According to Google News CH — Crime (de) citing the Federal Prosecutor's Office, a 19-year-old from the Trier area was arrested on 17 March and has been held in custody since then. Southwestern Broadcasting (SWR) initially reported on the case.
The young man from the south-western German border region with Luxembourg is accused of having been a member, as a teenager and young adult, of a terrorist and a criminal association — in each case in the role of alleged ringleader. The Federal Prosecutor's Office, Germany's supreme prosecuting authority, has assumed proceedings from the State Prosecutor's Office Koblenz. The accused is to be brought before an investigating judge of the Federal Court of Justice.
Incitement to murder via chat — cases in Russia, the USA and Switzerland
The allegations are serious and international: the accused is alleged to have persuaded a minor boy in Russia via chat groups to kill a child at a school with a knife. He is said to have incited teenagers in the USA and Sweden to commit arson against vehicles. Furthermore, according to the Federal Prosecutor's Office, there is suspicion that he called for the killing of a US citizen in a chat group.
The authority also cites specific cases from Switzerland. Furthermore, the accused is alleged to have made contact via the internet with a child in a European country and induced that child to perform sexual acts on themselves with a knife. The victim suffered serious injuries. He is said to have subsequently distributed video recordings of individual acts online.
Far-right association founded, image and video material shared
The Federal Prosecutor's Office accuses the 19-year-old of founding an association with far-right ideology no later than the end of March 2024. The aim was said to be to bring about the collapse of the social order through particularly serious crimes — including murder and manslaughter. "Image and video material of such acts are deliberately shared in chat groups to advertise the association and future attacks," the authority stated in its announcement.
The full list of charges additionally includes incitement to multiple counts of arson, rape, sexual abuse of a child, organised distribution of child sexual abuse material, public incitement to commit crimes, approval of crimes, and depictions of violence.
Link to the so-called COM scene
The Federal Prosecutor's Office assigns both groups to the so-called COM scene or at least sees a link to it. This scene developed several years ago on the internet. "Its members deliberately search social media or gaming platforms for very young, mostly female persons who are to be pressured through manipulation and coercion into degrading acts and/or self-harm up to suicide," the authority explained.
The case shows parallels to an ongoing trial in Hamburg, in which an alleged paedophile criminal known by the forum name "White Tiger" has been charged. According to prosecutors, he is said to be the head of the international sadists network "764" and to have committed more than 200 crimes via the internet, deliberately targeting psychologically vulnerable children and young people.
Source: Google News CH — Crime (de)