German authorities have arrested a man suspected of sexually abusing children over the past two decades after finding a boy who had been missing for several weeks at his apartment.

Petra Hertwig, a prosecutor in the eastern city of Cottbus, told news agency dpa that the 52-year-old man is suspected of 175 counts of sexual abuse. The cases go back as far as 1994.

The man was arrested after police yesterday found a mentally disabled 14-year-old boy who had been missing for four weeks at his apartment, where he had apparently been held.

Ms Hertwig said officials still have to determine what happened during that time.

The other suspected cases, involving five possible victims, came to light during the search for the boy.