Utrecht cop accused of child sex abuse, grooming of teen boys
A police officer from the Midden-Nederland department is accused of sexually abusing at least one boy and grooming at least two others. The three currently known victims are 14 and 15 years old, but the Public Prosecution Service (OM) expects to identify more victims as the investigation continues, the OM said at a pre-trial hearing against the 36-year-old man from Utrecht on Monday.
In May, a minor boy reported to the police that an adult was sending him sexually suggestive messages. The police investigated and that led to the seizure of the Utrecht cop’s phone. On it, they found sexually suggestive chats with the boy who went to the police, chats with other minors, and child pornographic material. One of the victims said the man sexually abused him physically.
The police arrested their colleague on August 28 and he has been in custody since then. On Monday, the court remanded him into pre-trial detention until the next hearing in February.
According to the OM, the Utrecht man approached his victims on social media. It is increasingly common for teenagers to be confronted with online contacts trying to obtain sexually suggestive material from them, the OM said. “Sexual experiences via the internet are a new reality. That is why it is all the more important to talk to children about boundaries and the dangers of social media,” the OM said.
