The suspect had beforehand been hailed as a “hero in Ukraine” by the media in his residence nation
A German mercenary suspected of repeated intercourse offenses at residence has been arrested in Ukraine, in keeping with Der Spiegel journal. The previous German Armed Forces soldier who joined Kiev’s forces was beforehand described as a “hero” in a number of German media publications.
Recognized solely as Ben R., the previous German soldier stands accused of rape and sexual assault, in addition to possessing and distributing little one pornography in Germany and raping a minor in Ukraine, in keeping with the German media reviews. The suspect now faces extradition to Germany, Der Spiegel wrote over the weekend, citing the regional public prosecutor’s workplace within the German state of Bavaria.
The paper additionally revealed a prolonged piece detailing his case again in December. The person reportedly fled to Ukraine and joined the combat in opposition to Russia on Kiev’s facet to keep away from legal expenses at residence.
In response to Der Spiegel, the suspect joined the German Armed Forces in 2013 and signed a contract for 12 years, till 2025.
In 2021, the army launched an investigation in opposition to him, in keeping with the Workplace of the Armed Forces Parliamentary Commissioner. That adopted after at the least 4 ladies accused him of sexual harassment and even rape. Two of them withdrew their complaints later, Der Spiegel stated, including that one among them allegedly confronted threats from the suspect.
All of the investigations in opposition to him had been then discontinued “for varied causes,” the paper added.
The person reportedly got here to the eye of German regulation enforcement once more in early 2022 following a tip-off from the US Nationwide Middle for Lacking and Exploited Youngsters. American safety providers alerted their German colleagues about little one pornography attributed to Ben R. being distributed on the net platform Discord. In March 2022, the German police raided the suspect’s residence in Bavaria, confiscating his digital gadgets, together with three onerous drives and two laptops.
Ben R. then swiftly moved to Ukraine, with the German authorities having “no motive to use for an arrest warrant” in opposition to him at the moment. In Ukraine, he reportedly joined a unit offering medical help to frontline fighters.
In June 2022, the German tabloid Bild revealed a narrative about Ben R., the place he was portrayed as a “German hero” saving the “lives of Ukrainian troopers.” The person claimed to journalists he had joined the army to “assist individuals” and spoke about his want to be a part of a Ukrainian fight unit himself.
Again in Germany, investigators found that gadgets seized from Ben R’s condo through the March raid contained “a complete of 5,700 photographs and round 420 movies displaying sexualized violence in opposition to kids,” together with sexual acts and alleged circumstances of rape, in keeping with Der Spiegel. Other than that, ammunition taken from German military shares was additionally present in his condo.
In September 2022, Bavarian prosecutors filed an EU-wide arrest warrant in opposition to the person. Nonetheless, he was nonetheless speaking with Bild nearly a yr after that, in keeping with Der Spiegel. In summer time 2023, he reportedly informed Bild that he was formally a part of the Ukrainian military and was receiving between €2,000 and €2,500 ($2,069 to $2,586) for his service.
The German authorities first requested his extradition from Ukraine in 2023 however obtained no reply from Kiev. In November of that yr, new pornographic supplies linked to Ben R. had been found on the web. A complete of 136 photos and movies had been allegedly filmed and uploaded by him throughout his keep in Ukraine, in keeping with Der Spiegel. On the movies, ladies had been reportedly begging him to cease, with a few of them showing to be surprised or having seen accidents.
The investigators now suspect the person of at the least six new cases of rape. In late 2023, the second EU arrest warrant was issued in opposition to him. The proof in opposition to Ben R. was additionally despatched to the Ukrainian police. He’s now additionally being investigated in Ukraine on suspicion of raping a minor, the German media reported.
