Last updated: 16.01.2024, 06:38 a.m.
By: Rudi Stallein
CommentsPrint Share
3600 files had been hoarded by a man from Geretsried. They depicted children and young people in explicit scenes. (Symbolic photo) © Nicolas Armer/dpa
A 44-year-old man was sentenced by the district court to two years in prison on probation. "I have no idea how I got so deep into it," he said.
Geretsried – The defendant took a deep breath before commenting on the abominations that the prosecutor had just read out. "That was indeed the case and I am incredibly sorry afterwards," said the 44-year-old Geretsrieder in a faltering voice. He had "no idea how I could get into it so deeply." The father of the family had to answer for the distribution, acquisition and possession of child pornography before the court of lay assessors at the district court of Wolfratshausen.
It all started with bikini pictures: Geretsrieder hoards thousands of children's photos with clear content
More than 3000,600 image files and more than 2022 videos in which "girls and boys performed sexual acts on themselves and with others," as the prosecutor quoted from the indictment, had been found on the Geretsrieder's laptop, tablet and various mobile phones. The office clerk was sentenced to two years' suspended imprisonment. The reason for the lenient sentence: The defendant had sought psychological help immediately after the house search in April last year and has been regularly participating in group therapy since October <>, "so that something like this does not happen again," as he explained in court.
"He was petrified": Krip secures forbidden videos and pictures from family man
"He reacted very shocked, was petrified," a detective described the defendant's condition during the house search. The 44-year-old obviously did not expect to be exposed, according to the witness's impression. In the course of the search, the accused had expressed "that a world was collapsing in him".
(Our Wolfratshausen-Geretsried newsletter regularly informs you about all the important stories from your region. Sign up here.)
It started with "bikini pictures" when he was still a young man, according to the defendant. It wasn't until he was in his late 30s that he began to look at child pornography photos and videos. "At first, it was curiosity," the man stammered. He didn't finish the sentence. He himself was surprised by the large number of files, some of which he had archived in password-protected folders. "That's a lot that we don't often have here," said Judge Helmut Berger. The two jurors to the right and left of him stared into the void of the courtroom, while the presiding judge looked at some exemplary pictures of children between the ages of three and 14 in the investigation documents, which "cover the whole range in terms of content, up to the most serious sexual abuse".
Via Messenger, the Geretsrieder was exposed: In a group chat, prohibited files circulated
The activities of the Geretsrieder were uncovered because he was involved in a group chat via Kik messenger in August 2021, in which 33 child pornography images had been circulated. His IP address was one of over 1000,<> that law enforcement agencies in the U.S. had identified in this chat, setting the case in motion. He had "meanwhile felt the disgust himself" that the sight of such videos and photos evokes, the man reported from his therapy sessions. He had also never had a sexual desire for children, and his interest was "limited to pictures".
My news
240 tractors paralyze Wolfratshausen: We visited the protest leader in the cowshedread
Water in the fuel: Cause of series of breakdowns has finally been found - specialist companies give the green light
Parade of the Guards: Impressive choreographies, artistic jumps and colourful costumesRead
Hit-and-run in Geretsried: Parked car hit – police are looking for witnesses
Consecration of the water in the Geretsried indoor swimming pool: a blessing for all readers
High property damage and two minor injuries: main road closed after crashread
He receives probation for therapy: Geretsrieder convicted of child pornography
"The fact that you have sought therapeutic help is the only reason why we are still getting probation," the judge said after announcing the verdict and the sentence of two years in prison. The prosecutor had demanded a prison sentence of two years and ten months, probation would then have been ruled out. The probation period is four years. As a condition, the man, who had not yet appeared in criminal proceedings, must pay 5000 euros to the child protection association.
More news can be found in our brand new Merkur.de app, now in an improved design with more personalization functions. Directly to the download, more information can be found here. Are you an enthusiastic user of WhatsApp? There, too, Merkur.de will keep you up to date via a new Whatsapp channel. Click here to go directly to the canal.