German man sentenced to 2 years in jail for indecent acts against Cambodian girl

2008-04-24

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (AP) - A Cambodian court sentenced a 61-year-old German man to two years in prison Thursday for sexually abusing a 14-year-old girl, a prosecutor said.

Jopen Reimund Hubert, who was convicted of committing indecent acts against a minor, was also fined US$750 (euro 470) and ordered to pay US$2,000 (euro 1,250) in compensation to his teenage victim, Phnom Penh court prosecutor Sok Kalyan said.

Judge Iv Kim Sri could not be reached for comment Thursday.

Police arrested Hubert, from Cologne, Germany, in November after raiding his Phnom Penh hotel room and finding him in bed with the girl.

The raid followed a tip off from a French child rights group, Action Pour Les Enfants, which had been monitoring his activities. The group said Hubert had given the girl expensive gifts and money in return for sex.

It is not clear whether Hubert planned to appeal his conviction.

German charged with child sex in Cambodia: "I did nothing bad ... The girl in my room, I saved her from committing suicide"

Jopen Reimund Hubert (C) of Cologne covers his face with a towel as he stands next to a car in front of Phnom Penh Municipal court November 5, 2007. The 61-year-old German man was charged on Monday with sexual abuse of four Cambodian children, the latest Westerner to be charged with similar crimes as Southeast Asia cracks down on paedophile tourists. REUTERS /Chor Sokunthea

Mon Nov 5, 2007
German charged with child sex in Cambodia

PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - A 61-year-old German man was charged on Monday with sexual abuse of four Cambodian children, the latest Westerner to be charged with similar crimes as Southeast Asia cracks down on paedophile tourists.

Jopen Reimund Hubert of Cologne was arrested in a raid on his Phnom Penh hotel room. He was found with a 14-year-old girl, said Colonel Keo Thea, chief of Phnom Penh's anti-trafficking unit.

Police also said they confiscated scores of pornographic pictures stored in his computer, including a picture of one of the four girls.

Prosecutor Sok Kalyan said he had charged Hubert with sexual abuse of the girls, which could land him in jail for up to 20 years.

Hubert, who denied the charges, was remanded in custody and could spend up to six months behind bars while police complete their investigation.

"I did nothing bad," he told Reuters when he appeared in court for a remand hearing.

"The girl in my room, I saved her from committing suicide. She has problem with her parents," he said. "I spent my own money to support those girls to go to school, buy food, and clothes. This all a mistake."

Activists of the Action Pour Les Enfants anti-paedophile group said they had followed Hubert for the last two years and tipped police off about him after he was seen with four girls in the beach town of Sihanoukville.

Arrest of accused German pedophile Jopen Reimund Hubert

A German man Jopen Reimund Hubert, left, covers his face as police officers escort him into the Phnom Penh Municipal court in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, Sunday, Nov. 4, 2007. A Cambodian prosecutor said Monday he has formally charged the German national with debauchery after the man was caught sleeping in a bed a 14-year-old girl. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)