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Hanover (dpa / lni) - The State Criminal Police Office of Lower Saxony warns young women on the Internet with a video against falling for so-called loverboys and slipping into prostitution.

The aim is to make young women aware of the scam, announced the State Criminal Police Office on Wednesday.

Loverboys played their victims a great love and the dream of a common future - the result is emotional dependence.

Then the victims would be pushed into prostitution.

The video can be seen where the perpetrators are increasingly on the lookout for their victims - on social networks such as Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

How large the number of victims of the loverboy method is, cannot be precisely quantified, said the State Criminal Police Office.

Such cases did not constitute a separate criminal offense, but fell under forced prostitution.

However, “a high number of unreported cases can be assumed” because experience shows that victims rarely report the perpetrators out of shame, emotional ties or fear of reprisals.

Numerous victims would therefore not be known to the police.

Nevertheless, one can say that predominantly young women end up in prostitution using this method.

The establishment of contact is increasingly digital, via social networks or messenger services.

According to the LKA, the perpetrators seek contact with young women from all social classes.

In order to build trust quickly, they used problems in school or in the family as a point of contact.

Within a few months or even weeks, a strong emotional dependency develops, at the same time they isolate the victims from their social environment.

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When transitioning into prostitution, compulsion is not always recognizable.

For example, with a view to an alleged future together, it is emphasized that money can be made quickly with prostitution.

Faked financial hardship is also used as a means of pressure.

The victims are then in a situation that is difficult for them to assess, characterized by shame, fear, excessive demands and the desire to hold onto the previously happy relationship.

© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210217-99-477716 / 2

LKA video on Twitter

LKA Lower Saxony on the loverboy method