German prosecutors said Wednesday that a pediatrician working at a hospital near Berlin has been charged with 130 sex-related offences, including the alleged rape and serious sexual abuse of children, with many of the incidents said to have occurred inside the hospital.
The paediatrician has been in pre-trial detention since November. The extent of the offences was previously unknown. Prosecutors cited a risk of reoffending as a reason for the man's pre-trial detainment.
In January, it became known that the doctor was alleged to have sexually abused a child while on duty at the hospital in Rathenow, west of Berlin. Following a complaint by the child’s mother, the police carried out searches, with investigators seizing numerous data storage devices.
The Potsdam public prosecutor’s office then investigated whether there were further victims.
The 130 offenses charged are alleged to have taken place between early December 2013 and November 2025, according to the prosecutor’s office. "The accused is alleged to have committed the majority of the offences in the course of his professional duties," the office said.
The Havelland Kliniken, a group that runs several hospitals in the region, including the one in Rathenow, has said that the accusations are undermining the trust of patients, and set up a hotline for people to call in with tip-offs.
Prosecutors kept silent on the case for months and did not provide further details when announcing the charges on Wednesday.
A spokeswoman for the regional court in Potsdam said the court's press office had yet to receive the case file and would refrain from answering questions until then.
The Havelland Kliniken said back in January that they would review protective measures at the group's clinics.
In the case of the child reported in January, the hospital group said its protocol, which calls for a third person to attend a pediatric examination, had been violated.
