Scandal in youth home

Several boys abused: educator does not deny it

The man had to answer for sexual abuse at St. Pölten Provincial Court on Thursday.(Bild: Weichhart/Krone KREATIV)

A 59-year-old man is alleged to have sexually abused three boys in a children's and youth home in Lower Austria between January and July last year. The youngest victim was 12 years old at the time of the crime. In court in St. Pölten, he has now been sentenced to five years in prison. 

The charges include sexual abuse of defenceless or mentally impaired persons, serious sexual abuse of minors and abuse of a relationship of authority. In court in St. Pölten, the 59-year-old partially confessed to the charges. According to the defense lawyer, the accused was responsible for the "hardship cases" in his role as an educator in the children's and youth home.

"My client received a lot of praise from his employer. He was able to build up a relationship with the most difficult young people," said the lawyer in the opening statement. 

Relationship of trust exploited
The German-born man worked as a social education worker in the children's and youth home. It was during this time that the assaults are said to have occurred. "The accused exploited the boys' relationship of trust", said the public prosecutor at the start of the trial. And he did so in his role as intensive caregiver for the minors aged 12 to 17. As the oldest victim suffers from an autism disorder, the acts are "all the more reprehensible" according to the prosecution, as sexual acts cannot be classified in this case. Another victim has an intellectual disability.

Specifically, the accused is alleged to have sexually abused the twelve-year-old during an overnight visit after a sauna session together. The 59-year-old attempted to treat his "shower phobia" with the adolescent, who was affected by autism, on official orders.

Confessed to the charges
After the 17-year-old had massively neglected his personal hygiene, showering together was the order of the day. "As an educator, he had the task of supervising or even actively carrying out personal hygiene," explained his defense lawyer. The defendant pleaded not guilty on this point, as there was no "objective sexual connection". 

According to the defense lawyer, the man "fully and remorsefully confessed" to the charges relating to the twelve-year-old. The accused denied the allegations concerning the 16-year-old. The teenager had no longer been in the home after 2019, so there was no longer a relationship of authority in 2023.

The verdict is not yet final
In court, the 59-year-old appeared calm and introverted. In the early afternoon, the verdict was handed down: the German was sentenced to five years in prison (with a possible sentence of up to ten years). The private party's representative demanded 7,000 euros in compensation for each of the three victims. Each of them was awarded 3000 euros. The social education worker was also banned for an indefinite period from working for institutions or associations involved in the education or training of young people.