German Criminals Boast About Using New Gender Self-ID Law To Hide Identities, Obscure Criminal Records

By Marielena Meder

Convicted criminals in Germany are endorsing Germany’s new gender self-identification law for allowing them to easily hide their pasts by changing their identities. One violent criminal, Mirko Guth, even spoke to local press about his plans to change his legal sex and name by claiming to be transgender.

Guth, who spent several years in prison for violent crimes and aggravated robbery, described using the gender self-identification law to hide his past as a “fuck you to the state,” complaining that he had struggled with difficulties in opening bank accounts and obtaining mobile phone plans due to his lengthy record of serious offenses.

After the Self-Determination Act came into effect in Germany on November 1, 2024, individuals were permitted to change their legal sex and name through a simple declaration at the registry office. The new law also included a disclosure ban, which prohibits passing on the real sex and former name without consent and imposes harsh penalties for those who “misgender” or “deadname” a person who has changed their legal identity.

“This is the paragraph that erases my past,” Guth told Die Welt regarding the disclosure ban. “I am bankrupt and can’t get work contracts anymore. If I become a woman, I can have a mobile phone, an Amazon account, and a Netflix account again.”

Mirko Guth.

“I can’t be mistaken for a woman. I believe I don’t have a single feminine trait,” Guth, who is bald and covered in tattoos told Die Welt. “I’m doing this out of desperation.”

Guth reports that he first got the idea to take advantage of the law from a woman he had worked with at the youth welfare office. After being released from prison, Guth had attempted to offer his services as a “reformed criminal” to a youth-focused organization called “Gefangene helfen Jugendlichen e.V“ (Prisoners Help Youth). This association of former prisoners organized prison visits, conducted school prevention education, and offered anti-violence training intended to steer at-risk kids away from a life of crime.

However, the state cut off financial support for the association in 2024, leaving Guth dejected. He then pursued changing his legal sex and name.

Guth reports that many of his friends with criminal records will similarly seek to change their legal sex and names under the law. But not only do they seek to erase their past, they also plan to deliberately invade women’s washrooms and locker rooms, hoping to be thrown out so they can sue for discrimination and collect compensation.

There have been several cases in Germany involving trans-identified males demanding money after being denied access to women-only spaces. As previously reported by Reduxx, a man in Bavaria named Nicolas “Laura” Holstein was awarded €1,000 after being refused membership to a women’s-only gym.

Doris Lange, the owner of Lady’s First fitness studio, reported that one week after she was ordered to pay a €1,000 fine, she received a demand from Holstein’s lawyers for an additional €2,500 in compensation, along with a threat of a €5,000 penalty if she were to deny him access to the women-only gym in the future.

In another case, a neo-Nazi changed his legal name and sex, and is now suing a child safeguarding advocate for referring to him as a “man” without his consent. Last month, Reduxx spoke exclusively with Josefine Barbaric, the chairwoman of the association of Nein, lass das! e.V. (No, don’t do that!) for the prevention of sexual violence against children and adolescents, from whom “Maria-Svenja” Lieblich is now demanding €15,000 in “discrimination” compensation.

Barbaric is also being ordered to sign a cease-and-desist declaration, which would entitle Liebich to collect a €10,000 fine from her if she ever misgender him in the future and is raising funds for her legal defense. 

In addition to hiding their criminal past and finding an easy payday, some men have admitted to using the self-determination law to avoid conscription and commit bank fraud.

One man who spoke to Die Welt said he hoped to avoid military service by altering his legal sex to “female” in the event a war broke out in Germany. However, the law does include a specific regulation forbidding sudden “sex changes” in the midst of impending or active war.

In other cases, men have planned to open multiple bank accounts in different federal states, obtain loans, withdraw the money, and then change their gender identity and name.

Spokespersons from Commerzbank and the Federal Association of German Banks (BdB) have expressed doubts that this plan would work, as they only grant significant overdrafts and loans if regular net income, for example from salary payments, is present in the account. However, a criminal in Berlin pulled off a similar heist in 2023, prior to the introduction of the Self-Determination Act.

The 32-year-old man claimed to be “transgender” at several registry offices, and thus obtained new personal documents multiple times. With the obtained documents, he opened several bank accounts, withdrew the money, entered into contracts with mobile phone providers, and made online purchases. According to the public prosecutor’s office, further investigations are pending against the accused for the same fraudulent scheme.

The police union had previously warned that easing the regulations around changing legal documents would open the floodgates to criminals seeking to use the law to avoid detection or commit further crimes. Registrars and government officials have also expressed fears of becoming the targets of discrimination complaints if they refuse or question the motives of some change requests.

Since the implementation of the Self-Determination Act at the end of November, almost 15.000 individuals in Germany have altered their legal sex. This figure significantly surpasses the initial estimate of 4,000 changes per year.

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Marielena Meder
Marielena Meder
Marielena is a contributor and German-language translator at Reduxx. A fierce defender of women's rights, Marielena is fighting to protect women's spaces and safeguard youth in her native land of Germany.
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