A monstrous case: The Frankfurt regional court found a 44-year-old man guilty on Friday of, among other things, attempted murder, particularly serious rape, grievous bodily harm, distribution of violent pornographic content and unlawful trafficking in narcotics and medicines. The court sentenced the defendant to 14 years in prison and also ordered subsequent preventive detention. The convicted person has to pay five-figure sums to his victims.
According to the court’s conviction, the Chinese citizen drugged and raped mostly Chinese women between the ages of 18 and 33 between January 2020 and November 2024 in several German cities, including Göttingen, Nuremberg, Mannheim, Frankfurt and Dreieich. He filmed and photographed his actions and then shared the recordings in Telegram groups, among other places.
According to presiding judge Jörn Immerschmitt, in these groups men exchanged rape fantasies and gave each other advice and information. The 44-year-old was sometimes referred to as a “master” and he also took part in openly misogynistic communication. In connection with the trial in France surrounding the mass rape of Gisèle Pelicot, he wrote: “Haha, I want to take part in this action too.”
The victims included women from the perpetrator’s social circle, including neighbors, work colleagues, good friends and lodgers. In addition, the perpetrator contacted women via the Chinese online platforms “Xiaohongshu” and “WeChat”, sometimes posing as a woman and offering housing or apartments for rent. There he tied up the victims, drugged them with illegal drugs and drugs, and raped them.
Long-term consequences for the victims
Judge Immerschmitt spoke of “very serious life changes, probably forever,” with a view to the consequences for those affected. To this day, they have suffered significant consequences, struggled with severe psychological consequences including suicidal thoughts, and some have moved and left their jobs. Her social life is severely restricted. Due to the perpetrator’s deceitful approach, many of the women did not notice the crimes and only found out about them after the charges were filed. “We hope that the victims can come to terms with their suffering,” said Immerschmitt.
According to the judge, the perpetrator had “committed the worst crimes for years” and displayed a “narcissistic personality” with little empathy. His actions increasingly escalated: he initially mixed narcotics in orange juice and later also in chocolate. In one case, the defendant raped a colleague during a live stream, and in another, he raped a lodger next to an eleven-month-old baby. According to Immerschmitt, he deliberately did not explain many other details publicly because they were “hard to express verbally” due to their disturbing elements.
In eight cases, the defendant is said to have sedated women by administering various prescription sleeping pills and then raped them while they were defenseless. According to the verdict, by administering sleeping pills, the defendant accepted the death of the victims. In some cases he left the women unconscious in their apartments and left.
When the 44-year-old’s apartment was searched last year, investigators found several hard drives containing a total of 176,755 videos and images, some of which show serious sexual abuse of children. The trial against the man has been ongoing in the Frankfurt regional court since October last year. He was arrested on November 14, 2024 and has been in custody since then.