German minister resigns over child pornography 'probe leak'

Last Friday, he unexpectedly announced his resignation from parliament after more than 15 years citing poor health.  

At a hurriedly convened news conference in Berlin, Friedrich said he is fully convinced that politically and legally he did the right thing when he informed SPD Chairman Sigmar Gabriel during the coalition negotiations in October that Edathy's name surfaced during an international investigation to combat child pornography.  

However, he is stepping down as the the pressure mounted on him in such a manner that he is no longer in a position to carry out his responsibilities and he also lacked the necessary political support, Friedrich said in a brief statement.

The minister announced his resignation just hours after the State Prosecutor's Office in Hannover confirmed for the first time that it has been conducting investigations against Edathy since Monday on suspicion of possessing or attempting to obtain child pornography.  

Photos and videos of naked boys between 9 and 14 years found so far are on the “border line” of a criminal offence, head of the prosecutor's office Joerg Froehlich said in Hannover.

However, the authorities are continuing their investigations because their experience showed that those interested in the so-called “category 2” pornography could also be trying to acquire hard-core material, Froehlich told reporters.

According to a media report, the Indian-origin lawmaker had used his credit card to pay a Canadian firm for the photos and videos and it led investigators to track him down.