The teacher who is said to have bought nude photos from some of his students at a high school in Graz will soon have to answer in court. As the Graz public prosecutor’s office confirmed, the indictment (not yet legally binding) has been completed. The educator is being investigated on suspicion of possession of child pornography, among other things. The photos were transmitted via the social media platform Snapchat – the accused (40) had posed as a girl there. The man was released from duty after the incident became known. He was held in custody for two days before being released on conditions.
The tip-off to the police came from the state’s education directorate. During a search of the teacher’s home, data carriers were seized and were then evaluated. Previously, students had apparently contacted a guidance counselor, who then got the investigation rolling. According to the indictment, the suspect gave the students money and vouchers for the photos. “A total of 16 victims were identified by name during the investigation,” said Christian Kroschl, spokesman for the public prosecutor’s office, to the Kleine Zeitung. One student was still underage at the time of the crime, i.e. under 14 years old. Particularly perfidious: The accused was considered one of the most popular teachers at his school, and many even spoke of him as a “trusted teacher”.
Christian Kroschl, spokesman for the public prosecutor’s office © Christian Penz
Partially confessed
The charges against the teacher range from pornographic depiction of minors to attempted sexual assault and attempted sexual abuse. The most serious accusation is that of sexual abuse of minors – in the summer of 2018, the teacher is said to have enticed an underage victim to perform sexual acts on himself.
The man is also accused of abusing a relationship of authority. He is also accused of defamation – according to the accusation, he trashed a teacher in a conversation with the teaching staff and explained that she was probably behind the nude photo affair. The teacher gave better grades for the photos, the accused explained.
Great pressure on the victims
According to the prosecution, it is clear that the accused put a lot of pressure on the victims: even when they had already sent intimate photos of themselves, he kept demanding more. He threatened to make the old footage public and put it online if no more pictures were sent.
According to spokesman Kroschl, the accused has only partially confessed. The offense period runs from 2016 to 2022. Penalty range: six months to five years.
