Catholic acolyte convicted of sexually abusing minors, handed 4-year prison sentence

Catholic acolyte convicted of sexual abuse

BERLIN — A German court has convicted a former Roman Catholic acolyte and church youth director of sexually abusing children and sentenced him to four years and nine months in prison.

The state court in the central city of Darmstadt found the 31-year-old man guilty on Monday of abusing six boys, aged 11 to 13, court spokeswoman Christa Pfannenschmidt told The Associated Press on Tuesday.

The court said the eight abuse cases took place in Catholic and Protestant parishes between 2001 and 2004. The defendant, referred to only as Sven K. under German privacy laws, led youth groups and organized children’s theater events. Sven K. was convicted of giving the boys large amounts of alcohol and, in at least one instance, marijuana-laced cookies, before abusing them.