German police found images of child abuse during a search of the home of Eintracht Frankfurt Under-19 head coach Helge Rasche, who lost his life in a car crash earlier this month, according to a report.
The Bundesliga club confirmed the death of the 33-year-old in a statement on September 6, a day after police reportedly conducted a search at the home of the youth team coach.
His passing was met with grief from the club and even rivals Borussia Dortmund, who shared their condolences on social media after it was reported that Rasche’s white Hyundai hit a tree on a road between Dietzenbach and Rodgau, to the south-west of Frankfurt.
However, according to BILD, the coach had been the subject of an investigation before his death following a report to the police.
The outlet claim that a search warrant was issued by the ‘Frankfurt am Main District Court on suspicion of distributing pornographic content in accordance with Section 184 of the Criminal Code.’
Eintracht Frankfurt Under-19 head coach Helge Rasche died in a car crash earlier this month
‘Data storage devices were seized’ in the search, BILD claim after ‘a large number of child pornographic image files were found on the data storage devices.’
In their initial reporting of the incident, the publication stated that his car went off the road after a junction to a gravel works and crashed into a tree.
Pictures obtained by BILD showed that Rasche’s Hyundai was a write-off after the accident, with the front of the car caved in.
It’s said that he died at the scene of the accident after suffering serious injuries.
Frankfurt players were informed about Rasche’s passing on the day of his death.
He had joined Eintracht’s youth department in 2020.
In 2023 he was promoted to U17 and then U19 head coach in the youth Bundesliga.
In 2023 Helge Rasche was promoted to U17 and then U19 head coach in the youth Bundesliga
This season, he was on the sidelines for five games in the U19 youth league (Group D) – where they were second with 10 points.
Rasche had been preparing his side for their home game against Darmstadt 98 on September 14.