The trial against a former doctor from North Zealand, Denmark, charged with extensive sexual abuse of his two young daughters, commenced on Tuesday at Hillerød City Court. The doctor, who has previously admitted guilt in several other serious offenses, is notably charged with the rape of his daughters. The prosecution is additionally seeking an indefinite custodial sentence and a revocation of his medical license.
The accused arrived at the court wearing a green shirt, light trousers, and sneakers, carefully avoiding eye contact with awaiting journalists. He denied guilt on several counts of rape but acknowledged his involvement in an international pedophile network during police custody. This network has led to arrests in the United States, Australia, England, Scotland, and France.
The case unfolded following a tip-off from English police, who had monitored the messaging service Wickr, which the Danish doctor used under the alias “Painfully Small.” Police in North Zealand conducted a raid one evening, discovering the doctor at his family home, where he attempted to encrypt his computer in front of the officers.
Due to the severity of the case and the need to protect the identities of the victimized children, the court has decided that the proceedings must take place behind closed doors. This measure is intended to shield the children’s identities from undue harm.
The indictment, which spans 39 pages, includes nearly 100 charges, among them rape, incest, violations of modesty, and the production and distribution of child pornography. The oldest daughter was just two years old at the time of the first assault, while the youngest was still an infant. The abuses were both photographed and video recorded by the father.
The accused doctor has been in pre-trial detention for over a year and has since completely changed his name. Evidence from the doctor’s own recordings has been central to the case, and he is also charged with having advised another man on sexual abuse of that man’s daughter, as well as inviting an anonymous individual to commit a sexual assault on his oldest daughter via Wickr.
Overall, he faces charges for possession of 6,769 photos and 2,111 videos containing child pornography, a significant portion of which features his own children. Given the ongoing danger that police assess the doctor poses, the prosecution demands that he be sentenced to indefinite custody as well as restrictions on contact with children and the right to practice medicine.
If the court does not grant the request for custody, the prosecution aims instead to secure a significantly extended prison sentence to reflect the gravity of the case. A verdict is expected next week.