French and German police bust pedophile network: nineteen arrests during house searches

Nineteen suspects were arrested during large-scale searches in a pedophilia investigation in France and Germany. They are suspected of acquiring, possessing and distributing images of child sexual abuse. The public prosecutor’s office and the Hannover police said this on Wednesday.

Last Sunday, investigators in French Alsace carried out searches in hotel rooms and vehicles of twelve German and two American suspects, aged 36 to 74. At the same time, house searches took place in several German states. Five suspects were removed from their home. After the police investigation, they were all released.

One hundred French and two hundred German agents took part in the action. Several objects, especially hard drives, were found. An initial investigation of smartphones, tablets and laptops found data indicating images of child sexual abuse.

Accusing each other

Some suspects have already made partial confessions and accused each other. According to the researchers, no children and young people have been at risk so far.

The public prosecutor and the police said they had dealt a blow to a network of pedophiles that had been active for years.