The Berlin Public Prosecutor’s Office said on Tuesday it had dropped its investigation into sexual assault against Till Lindemann, the frontman of the rock band Rammstein, due to a lack of evidence.
The investigation began in June after several women said Mr Lindemann drugged young people before, during and after concerts into having sex with them. Lawyers for Mr. Lindemann denied these allegations in a statement and threatened legal action against those making the claims and news media reporting on them.
“I thank everyone who impartially waited for the end of the investigation,” 60-year-old Lindemann posted on Instagram on Tuesday.
When the German news media reported the allegations of inappropriate behavior against the leader of one of the country’s most successful modern music groups, commercial partners ended their ties with Mr. Lindemann. Universal, which distributes Rammstein’s music, said it would end all promotional activities. And politicians condemned the behavior described.
“We need more awareness about abuse of power and sexual violence, and not just in the music industry, but in the entire cultural industry,” Claudia Roth, the German culture minister, told Der Spiegel, a weekly magazine, adding: “ The times of filthy machismo combined with abuse of power and sexual violence must really and definitively be over.”
However, according to the Public Prosecution Service, it was impossible to substantiate the reports against Mr. Lindemann because so many allegations were made anonymously. Kaya Loska, a prominent influencer who had described her experiences backstage at a concert in 2022, was interviewed by prosecutors. But they said she was of little help because she was not a witness to crimes.
“It was therefore not possible to sufficiently substantiate any allegations of the crimes, nor was it possible to get an impression of the credibility of the alleged injured parties and the credibility of their statements during the interrogation,” said Sebastian Büchner, who spoke on behalf of the Public Prosecutor speaks. office, wrote in a statement.
Shelby Lynn, a former fan of the band, helped make the allegations public when she posted on social media about her experience at a concert in Vilnius in May, where she thought she had been drugged. Ms Lynn presented her complaint to the Lithuanian police, who refused to investigate.
