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8 August 2007
Ankara/Berlin (dpa) – A German teenager on trial in Turkey for allegedly sexually assaulting a 13 year-old English girl was Wednesday ordered to remain in custody pending the next session of his trial, the Anadolu news agency reported.
Marco Weiss, 17, from Uelzen in northern Germany, was arrested on April 11 after the parents of Charlotte M from Manchester complained to prosecutors that she had been sexually assaulted while on holiday in the Mediterranean resort of Antalya.
Weiss was accompanied by his parents Ralf and Martina at the Antalya Serious Crimes Court on Wednesday for a session closed to the public and to journalists due to Weiss being a minor. The trial was adjourned until September 6 with the judge ordering that Weiss remain in prison until that date.
A German Foreign Ministry spokeswoman in Berlin declined to comment on the court proceedings but said efforts were under way to secure his release.
She expressed confidence that the independent Turkish judicial system would guarantee a fair trial and would explore every legal avenue to secure Weiss’ release.
The spokeswoman referred to “indirect contacts” with the Turkish government and said that German consular officials were working to ensure regular access to Weiss by his parents and lawyers.
In interviews with both the Turkish and German press, Weiss said he had physical contact with the girl, and that she had consented to sex but denied they had actually had intercourse. Weiss also claimed that the girl said she was 15.
The case has proved to be a mini-diplomatic crisis between Turkey and Germany with Turkish officials outraged at the German media’s portrayal of the conditions at the prison where Weiss has been held, and also at German politicians for trying to put pressure on the Turkish government.
DPA
Subject: German news