Child abuse cases in Baden-Württemberg rise for fifth straight year, severe exploitation jumps nearly sixfold
Police recorded 1,775 offences against children in 2025, up from 1,719 the year before, and expect the trend to persist through 2026, according to the state criminal police office.
Rising trend
Sexual violence against children and adolescents in Baden-Württemberg continued to climb in 2025. The state criminal police office (LKA) registered 1,775 child abuse offences last year, a 3.3% increase from 1,719 in 2024. The number has risen every year since 2020, and the LKA told the German Press Agency that the upward trend will persist through 2026. A decade ago, in 2016, authorities recorded 1,174 cases, meaning the total has grown by roughly 51% over ten years.
- 1,174 child abuse cases recorded, the baseline before the current upward trend.
- Annual increases begin; cases rise each subsequent year.
- 1,719 cases recorded; severe exploitation cases at 8.
- 1,775 cases recorded; severe exploitation jumps to 47; adolescent abuse at 88.
- Day care father sentenced to 9.5 years for abusing infants and toddlers.
- Heidelberg man sentenced to nearly 4 years for online abuse of over 20 girls.
- LKA expects child abuse and adolescent abuse numbers to continue rising.
Abuse of adolescents also increased. Police counted 88 offences in 2025, about 17% more than the previous year. The LKA expects those figures to rise further in the current year as well.
Severe exploitation spike
While overall child pornography offences fell, the most serious category of exploitation surged. Cases of severe sexual abuse of children connected to the production and distribution of pornographic material jumped from 8 in 2024 to 47 in 2025. The former interior minister of Baden-Württemberg, Thomas Strobl (CDU), condemned the spread of such material when presenting the state's security report earlier this year.
The distribution of child abuse images is among the most disgusting, abhorrent, and despicable acts.
He added that behind almost every image lies an actual case of sexual abuse. By contrast, the broader category of producing, distributing, and acquiring child pornography declined 15.6% to 4,186 cases in 2025, and investigators expect a further drop in 2026.
- 2024
- 8 cases
- 2025
- 47 cases
Recent convictions
Two recent court rulings illustrate the nature of the offences. In late July 2026, the Heidelberg regional court sentenced a 33-year-old man to nearly four years in prison. He admitted to abusing more than 20 girls aged 8 to 13 over the internet, persuading them to send him self-made pornographic content. Investigators tracked him down after the parents of one victim filed a complaint. The verdict is not yet final.
Earlier in July, a 53-year-old day care father from the Rems-Murr district received a nine-and-a-half-year sentence in Stuttgart. Prosecutors said he severely abused infants as young as a few months and children up to 12 years old, mostly toddlers, over several years. He also produced, possessed, and distributed child abuse images and videos. The man confessed to the charges on the first day of his trial. That ruling, too, remains subject to appeal.
Digital dangers
The federal criminal police office (BKA) recently warned that digital offence patterns and artificial intelligence are increasingly shaping child sexual abuse. More crimes are now committed online without physical contact.
The increased use of the internet encourages digital phenomena such as cybergrooming, livestreaming, or sextortion.
The agency noted that nationwide figures for sexual abuse of minors remain alarmingly high, with technology enabling offenders to reach victims remotely.
