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Accused football coach in court: Serious crimes committed

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Britta Schultejans/dpa

The Munich I regional court has sentenced a former football coach to seven and a half years' imprisonment for hundreds of sexual assaults and 153 rapes.

Contrary to what the public prosecutor requested, the court did not impose subsequent preventive detention.

The man had confessed to having abused young footballers from his club for years.

The public prosecutor's office had demanded eight years.

The narrow punishment range was determined after the parties agreed on a so-called deal at the Chamber's suggestion - the confession was intended to spare the young footballers from having to testify in court.

More than 800 cases of abuse and sexual assault accused

Unlike the prosecution, the court did not consider the crime of sexual abuse of those under protection to be proven because the victims were not entrusted to the defendant "for support in their lifestyle."

The public prosecutor's office had charged more than 900 cases of abuse, sexual assault and rape.

The majority of the court classified the acts as sexual assaults, namely in 488 cases.

It could not be conclusively proven that the victim was younger than 14 years old during the first attack.

The court spoke of "absolute borderline cases" when it comes to the issue of abuse of those under protection in cases of acts that took place in the training camp, far away from the young people's parents and their supervision.

However, the vast majority of the attacks took place in the sports club itself, in a physiotherapy room, which the defendant had previously locked from the inside.

The former head coach of the club in the Munich district, who was responsible for all football decisions there, admitted that he had abused the teenagers during alleged physiotherapeutic treatments and had also raped them in numerous cases.

He did this under the pretext that his penetration with an unprotected finger or the manipulation of the penis served to improve blood flow to muscle groups and thus prevent injuries.

The players also took part because they hoped to improve their football performance.

The presiding judge stated that it was reprehensible that the football coach had exploited his position in the club "to be able to commit crimes of this magnitude."

Just the “tip of the iceberg”

The 25 victims were very young and just in their sexual development.

"This is the phase of life where you want to be defensive, where you don't want to be weak." Although some crimes were omitted due to uncertain times and counting methods used by the prosecution, 600 cases still remained.

“It’s crazy when you imagine it,” said the presiding judge.

However, the number of cases identified may be just the “tip of the iceberg”.

In her plea that morning, the public prosecutor said how “methodically, planned, and perfidious” the soccer coach had proceeded in his alleged treatments.

Because a sports club is usually “a protected space where no one expects anything bad.”

There, the young people moved “in the world of the trainer” and “outside the parental protection zone”.

“He subjugated those who were injured”

The trainer worked with “carrot and stick”.

He was also available to the young people for private matters, but issued harsh disciplinary punishments for alleged misconduct.

It was hardly possible for the young people to avoid the alleged treatments.

“He tested what I would allow, I know that today,” the public prosecutor quoted one of the victims as saying.

The prosecutor said: "He subjected the injured parties to himself without them noticing."

The defense argued that there were young players who avoided the sessions but were still allowed to play.

Not all of the coach's actions were aimed at abuse; rather, his job and his love for football as a whole guided his actions, even if not for the actions themselves.

»I would like to apologize once again to my former players.

I'm sorry," said the coach in his last word before the verdict was announced.

He announced that he would undergo therapy while in prison.

bbr/fri