Germany investigates alleged sex assault using robot

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The 1.2m robot, coloured red and gold, allegedly touched the victim, 16, on the buttocks when she was with her friends in the German city of Cologne.

The 1.2m robot allegedly touched the victim, 16, on the buttocks when she was with her friends in Cologne, Germany.

PHOTO: COLOGNE POLICE/X

FRANKFURT – German police are investigating a 16-year-old and 19-year-old for allegedly using a robot to sexually assault a teenage girl, and live-streaming the act on social media, officials said on Oct 12.

The victim, aged 16, was with two friends in the western city of Cologne late on Oct 10 when the 1.2m robot approached her, police said.

The device is then alleged to have touched the girl on the buttocks and performed thrusting motions, they said.

The 16-year-old, allegedly the owner, and the 19-year-old are “said to have filmed the alleged assault, streamed it live on social media, and commented on it,” said a Cologne police statement.

A video circulating on platform TikTok shows a red and gold humanoid robot, accompanied by two males, pressing up against a teenage girl, who screams and moves away.

Police were alerted and found the robot in a car boot, where the owner is suspected to have hidden it.

The authorities seized the robot and two phones belonging to the suspects, who are now under investigation. AFP

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