On July 8, local time, a German court in Berlin made a first-instance judgment in a case involving a rape network, shao, a 32-year-old Chinese medical doctor, has been sentenced to five years in prison on charges of aiding and abetting aggravated rape. In an interview with Phoenix Satellite TV, Judge Warren of the Berlin Regional Court, deputy spokesman of the Berlin Criminal Court, said that Shao would be permanently disqualified from practicing medicine in Germany. In addition, previous media reports constituted a“Pre-conviction.” The court has taken the sentence into account.
The court found that the defendant Shao had repeatedly offered medical advice on drugging women in chat groups and assisting others to commit severe rape. In January 2024, a day before another defendant raped a woman in Frankfurt, Shao provided specific medical advice in the knowledge that he intended to rape her. The court found that the advice was subsequently adopted.
The court also found that Shao had sexually assaulted his fiancée in Beijing. In the search for Shao, police found a number of video files documenting his crimes in Beijing.
Warren: “The court today simply found the defendant guilty and sentenced him to a term of imprisonment. However, the judge again noted in sentencing that as a result of this criminal conviction, the defendant will no longer be able to practice medicine and other medical practices in Germany.”
The court said the crimes were serious and highly misogynistic. The judge pointed out that sexual offences occurred from time to time, but that the posting of content on the Internet after a crime, with other people cheering and offering advice in group chats, was a new phenomenon. In addition, the court stated that the personal consequences of the case for the accused had been taken into account in determining the sentence.
Warren: “In Germany, according to the jurisprudence of the higher courts, if the media have formed a certain ‘pre-conviction’ of the defendant, it may have an impact on the sentence, which means that the court may grant a certain reduction of the sentence.
“There have been a number of media reports that have been incorporated into the proceedings. The defendant has been named and in some cases described as a convicted person. As the judge said today, that was taken into account in sentencing.”
Shao’s lawyer told Phoenix TV after the trial that the defence had taken the arguments into account and that they would appeal the verdict.
Sun Qian reporting from Berlin for Phoenix Satellite TV