A 62-year-old substitute teacher from Essen appeared in Antwerp Correctional Court on Monday for showing nude photos of himself and his partner to two groups of secondary school pupils at Vita et Pax College in Schoten.
The incident occurred on 17 October 2024 during a Dutch language class. A group of 14-year-olds saw the nude photos on the digital classroom board, which the teacher quickly removed after approximately seven seconds. Witnesses said he appeared embarrassed and started blushing.
During the break, the incident quickly spread among students. Later, in another classroom with a different group of 14-year-olds, the teacher showed the same nude images again.
Some of these students had heard about the earlier incident and believed he displayed the photos intentionally, according to the prosecutor.
The teacher was summoned by the school’s management. He claimed it was accidental but offered his resignation, saying he wanted to take responsibility. He also stated he advocates for "ethically responsible pornography".
The school reported the incident to the police, and he was arrested and held overnight but later released under conditions, including a temporary teaching ban.
The prosecutor rejected the explanation of a technical error, arguing that the photos were deliberately projected.
Police investigations found the images were stored in a secured folder and only could have been displayed through deliberate action.
The prosecutor also noted the teacher’s technical abilities, given his past a former Apple salesman and noted the fact builds websites and has six servers from his home in France.
The man in his sixties for "exhibitionism" and "public incitement to sexual abuse of minors". The defendant was examined by a court psychiatrist, but no mental disorder was found.
The defendant himself said that an "embarrassing technical error" had occurred after he installed an update.
Verdict on 16 March.
