The case echoes the so-called pedophile known as “White Tiger”: In Hamburg, a young man has been standing trial again since Tuesday morning, accused of coercing children and teenagers on the internet into sexual acts and self-harm in front of webcams. The seven victims, according to the indictment, were girls aged between 12 and 15. In addition, the 18-year-old is also charged with homophobic assaults on gay men—something that sets him apart from the “White Tiger” case.
The trial is being heard before a juvenile chamber of the Large Criminal Court. The defendant is charged with more than 50 offenses allegedly committed while he was still a juvenile. The public is excluded from the proceedings due to the defendant’s age. So far, the court has scheduled 16 trial dates.
The accused apparently created fake profiles on gay dating platforms and arranged encounters with men between the summer of 2024 and the spring of 2025, supposedly for a sexual date. The victims were lured to secluded locations such as poorly visible country paths or park areas. Instead of the expected date, the defendant often waited there in the company of other youths, insulted his victims with homophobic slurs, beat them, and robbed them. Among the injuries inflicted by the alleged perpetrators were significant skull and facial injuries, including heavy bruising, deep lacerations, and fractures in the facial region.
The accused allegedly manipulated young girls online
According to the public prosecutor, the defendant founded online groups modeled on the international sadist network “764” — in which the man known as “White Tiger” is said to have played a leading role. There is said to be no direct connections among the defendants, according to prosecutors.
Like the “White Tiger,” the defendant in the second trial is said to have emotionally manipulated his victims and forced them into increasingly severe behaviors. One of the girls was persuaded by him to tattoo the names of the defendant and of the groups he founded on her skin. Authorities allege that the crimes were committed between May 2023 and March 2024. He is charged with serious sexual abuse of children, sexual coercion, and dangerous bodily harm through accomplice-like conduct.
Since December of last year, the accused has been in pretrial detention.
“White Tiger” has been standing trial since January
In the “White Tiger” case, proceedings have been underway since January against a 21-year-old German-Iranian before the district court—also in non-public sessions. The Hamburg defendant is alleged to have committed a total of 204 offenses between 2021 and 2023.
“White Tiger” is said to have been the head of the sadist network “764” and to have abused children and teenagers across continents via the internet. He is said to have first gained their trust, then extorted them with pornographic images and videos and forced them on camera to ever more severe self-harm—up to suicide.
According to a report in the Washington Post, which cites FBI information, the “764” network is named after a portion of the ZIP code of the Texan town Stephenville. It is the hometown of the founder of the network who was sentenced to 80 years in prison in the United States.
