German police hunt for group of up to 1,000 men of Arab and North African origin who sexually assaulted numerous women and threw fireworks into crowds at Cologne train station on New Year’s Eve.
- German police are hunting for a group of up to a 1,000 men in Cologne
- Men accused of carrying out a series of vile sexual assaults at train station
- Police described latest attacks as a completely new dimension of crime
German police are hunting for a group of up to a 1,000 men of Arab and North African origin who are accused of sexually assaulting numerous women and causing trouble at Cologne’s main station.
Police described the series of sexual assaults against women in Cologne on New Year’s Eve as a completely new dimension of crime.
Officers received numerous complaints from women who said they had been assaulted around Cologne’s main train station next to the western German city’s famous cathedral on the night from Thursday 31st to Friday 1st January.
The group of men reportedly also robbed their victims and threw fireworks at a crowd of people on New Year’s Eve.
Cologne police Chief Wolfgang Albers said witnesses described the assaults as coming from a group of up to 1,000 men whose appearance indicated they were of Arab or North African origin.
Some 90 criminal complaints have so far been filed, mostly for sexual assault with consequential robbery and including from 1 to 35 (depending on the source of the news) allegation of rape with penetration.
German news agency DPA quoted Albers telling reporters on Monday that it was an intolerable situation that such crimes are committed in the middle of the city.
One of the victims gave a harrowing testimony of her ordeal. << When we came out of the station, we were very surprised by a group that met us there. We then walked through this group of only men. I felt a hand on my buttocks, then on my breasts, in the end. I was groped everywhere. It was a nightmare. Although we shouted and beat them, the guys did not stop. I was touched around 100 times in the 200 meters. Fortunately I wore a jacket and trousers. >>
It is unclear if the men of the gang are all newcomer migrants but opinions remain divided in Cologne over the recent influx of migrants with protests held by PEGIDA and a campaign supporting migrants.
