Germany: After girl gang raped, Berlin youth center accused of cover-up because they did not want suspects to be labeled as ‘typical Muslims’
Posted For: taxpayer22
BERLIN — A major controversy has erupted in Berlin after allegations surfaced that staff at a youth center in the Gropiusstadt area of the Neukölln district failed to report serious sexual assaults involving a teenage girl to police.
The victim, a Turkish-Kurdish schoolgirl, is reported to have endured months of harassment at the facility before a January incident in which nine boys of Arab descent allegedly groped her in a back room of the center. According to reports, the boys took turns assaulting her while one stood at the door acting as a lookout. The incident reportedly ended only when a staff member entered the room.
Accounts from the center indicate that troubling behavior had been occurring for months prior to the incident. Girls were allegedly subjected to unwanted physical contact, including being pulled onto boys’ laps or having their breasts and buttocks touched without consent. Some of these incidents were said to have taken place in front of staff members.
Three days after the January assault, the girl reportedly disclosed to staff that she had been raped two months earlier in the garden area of the same youth center. According to her account, the November assault occurred in the evening. She remained in a corner afterward for hours before attempting to leave, only to find the facility locked. She escaped by climbing over a fence, breaking her ankle in the process.
The attack was allegedly recorded by a 17-year-old suspect known by the nickname “Medi.” According to reports, the video was later used to pressure the victim, with threats that it would be sent to her parents unless she continued meeting him at the center. After rumors of the recording spread among other boys, the girl was reportedly mocked and pressured to introduce them to her younger sister.
The youth center is now facing criticism over how the situation was handled. Instead of contacting police, staff reportedly implemented internal measures such as creating a “safe word” for female visitors to use if they felt threatened. The door to the back room where the January assault occurred was also removed.
Despite concerns raised by employees from other youth facilities, the center’s staff reportedly declined to file a police report. According to sources cited in German media, some employees believed involving authorities could lead to the suspects being labeled as “typical Muslims.”
Youth State Secretary Falko Liecke of the Christian Democratic Union condemned the center’s approach. “It’s outrageous that the Muslim perpetrators are apparently being protected here to avoid stigmatizing them, while the victim is being abandoned,” he said. Liecke announced he is examining whether child protection laws were violated.
The girl ultimately sought help outside the facility. Her parents, informed by a supporter, went to the State Criminal Police Office, where the victim provided a video statement to avoid repeated questioning. Police quickly seized the suspect’s mobile phone. Her father filed a criminal complaint against the alleged rapist and lodged complaints against staff and officials who reportedly failed to act.
Authorities confirmed that the youth welfare office had been notified on January 29 but did not file a police report, claiming they did not know the identities of the victim or the suspect. Liecke rejected the explanation, calling it a political cover-up.
About Post Author
