The family reportedly taped some of the alleged abuse that the woman endured
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NEED TO KNOW
- Arrest warrants were issued for a German family on suspicions of abusing a cleaner who lived in their home and worked for them
- The alleged victim endured severe physical abuse and was reportedly forced to pull out her own teeth
- The father in the household, who had previously been convicted of rape, allegedly filmed some incidents
A family in Germany, including a father with an existing criminal record, was arrested on suspicions of abusing a cleaner who was living in their home. They are also accused of recording some of the alleged abuse the woman was subjected to on camera.
In a statement shared with PEOPLE, Braunschweig senior public prosecutor Christian Wolters confirmed that arrest warrants were ordered by the Clausthal-Zellerfeld district court for a mother and daughter, aged 28 and 62, and a 49-year-old man, who was married to the mother. The warrants were issued "concerning dangerous bodily harm."
Wolters said that the family was "accused of having abused a 32-year-old woman in a domestic setting for weeks."
On Tuesday, March 24, German outlet Bild reported that the family was arrested over the weekend in the city of Salzgitter in Lower Saxony. Due to privacy laws in Germany, a suspect is not identified by their full name. Wolters did not provide further identifying information about the family beyond their ages and family relation.
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According to "reliable documents" examined by German broadcaster NDR and additional reporting by Bild, the alleged victim was living with the family.
The alleged abuse started in late 2025 and continued through mid-March, when the victim came forward, NDR reported, citing legal documents.
Per the outlets' reporting, the woman was living in the home and had agreed to take on cleaning duties as well as help out in the garden. She was reportedly not held hostage and was free to leave the home at any time, per Bild.
However, the women were accused of physically abusing and punishing the alleged victim when she was late for work. She was reportedly forced to pull out her own teeth on more than one occasion using a wrench, NDR reported, again citing legal documents.
The victim was allegedly hit with a baseball bat, had her tongue nailed to a board and her stomach burnt with a Bunsen burner. The outlets reported that the man — who Wolters said has previously been convicted of rape and aggravated assault — filmed some of the incidents.
Wolters spoke to Bild, saying, "There is strong suspicion of a crime. But ultimately, we have to proceed with a bit more caution.”
He added, “At the moment, we assume that what she says is credible. But of course, we have to verify that," adding, “We haven’t had many opportunities to check this yet. This is really just the beginning.”
"The allegations are very, very serious. Initially, everything suggests that they could very well be true. Whether this will ultimately be confirmed at the end of the investigation, I don't know," he said.
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"Further details cannot yet be released due to the investigation having only just begun," Wolters told PEOPLE.
Several neighbors spoke with Bild, with one claiming that they could "literally see [the victim's] physical deterioration."
"I heard her being screamed at in front of the house because she allegedly hadn't cleaned well enough. It was very disturbing. She was also missing more and more teeth," another said.
The outlets reported that the crimes were reported to the police after the alleged victim told a friend what was happening.
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