Two Syrian cousins deny sexual harassment of five girls at Gelnhausen pool

The charges

On Monday, 26 October 2026, the local court in Gelnhausen (Main-Kinzig district, Hesse) opened the trial of two Syrian cousins accused of sexually harassing five girls aged 13 to 15 at the Barbarossa outdoor pool in June 2025. The older defendant is now 29 and the younger is 19; they were 28 and 18 at the time of the incidents. Because the younger man is still treated as a young adult under German law, the case is heard by a youth court. Prosecutors charge the 19-year-old with sexual harassment in two cases and coercion in one case, to be judged under juvenile criminal law. The 29-year-old faces one count of sexual harassment, which carries a possible prison term of up to two years, and a 15-year-old is alleged to have been held by the leg.

What prosecutors describe

According to prosecutors, the five girls were touched on the buttocks and chest and felt disgust, fear and anger. They made clear that they rejected such behaviour. One 14-year-old reportedly told one of her attackers, in blunt terms, to get lost. The girls' accounts form the core of the prosecution case, and the court has said the affected schoolgirls are still to be heard as witnesses. Two of the five suspects were ultimately charged, and the other three were not.

The defence and the unidentified man

Both men rejected the allegations at the opening session and suggested a case of mistaken identity. They said they wanted to speak to the allegations to help the court establish what had happened. Both described a man with a gap in his teeth and tattoos whom they believe could be the actual offender, and police had not been able to identify him at the time. The older defendant said he briefly met someone with that appearance in the pool during a ball game, who told him he came from Romania, but there was no closer contact. The 19-year-old told the court he had only been swimming that day and had never seen the affected girls.

Police account and investigation

The first patrol officers reached the Barbarossa pool on 22 June 2025 and found it overcrowded on a very hot day. A group of around 15 to 20 girls had gathered at the pool edge, among them the five affected girls and their friends. The bath attendant, whom the girls had first approached, recognised the two men and pulled them out of the pool. Identity checks showed the men knew each other and had come with a group, contrary to their earlier claims. The officers told the court they could no longer recall many details of that day, and one described the scene as chaotic. Investigators searched flats, evaluated phones and questioned numerous witnesses. Five people were initially suspected, but investigations against three men were discontinued because the evidence was insufficient for charges.

Schedule and wider debate

The trial was originally due to start in spring but was postponed when the judge fell ill. Three further hearing dates are scheduled up to November, and the affected schoolgirls are to be heard. No verdict has been reached. The case sparked a debate on migration policy that also occupied Hesse's state politics, and both defendants hold Syrian citizenship.