Status: 21.08.2024 13:48
A soldier is said to have shot four people in the Rotenburg district, including a small child. The reason for this was apparently his separation from his wife. He is on trial in Verden today.
The 32-year-old at the time of the crime is accused of four counts of murder. According to the Verden public prosecutor’s office, he killed out of revenge and hatred. The prosecution is therefore considering a request for preventive detention, as a spokesman for the Verden regional court confirmed. The suspect and his wife had reportedly separated before the crime, and the woman had a new boyfriend. According to the prosecution, he himself will respond to the allegations in court on September 5. 35 days of hearings have been scheduled for the trial.
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7 Min
The suspect turned himself in shortly after the incidents in the communities of Scheeßel and Bothel. (01.03.2024) 7 Min
Four people from the wife’s circle shot dead
According to the Verden Regional Court, the accused planned the crimes as a military action. On the night of March 1, he is said to have first driven to Westervede in the municipality of Scheeßel. There he is said to have first shot the mother of his wife’s new boyfriend, who was sleeping in bed, as a court spokesman confirmed to NDR Niedersachsen. This woke the boyfriend up and the accused then killed him with at least ten shots. The victim’s six-year-old son was also in the house, but he was not injured.
Best friend and daughter killed with 14 shots
The accused then allegedly broke into the house of his wife’s best friend in Brockel, in the Bothel municipality, ten kilometres away. According to the court, the woman tried to escape with her three-year-old daughter in her arms and to talk to the accused before he shot her. He killed both of them with 14 shots. According to a court spokesman, the soldier did not intend to kill the three-year-old child intentionally. It was apparently wrapped in a blanket in its mother’s arms. The accused told investigators that he had not seen the child. The friend’s eleven-year-old daughter was also in the house, but she was unharmed.
Soldier reported for threat before crime
According to the district court, a further, separate trial will examine whether the defendant had threatened his ex-partner and her new boyfriend before the crime. Both had The defendant was reported for threatening behavior. On the same day, investigators reportedly conducted a so-called threat interview.
More information
The background to the crimes in Scheeßel has not yet been fully clarified. Were warnings not sufficiently heeded? (March 13, 2024) more
5 Min
A child is among the victims. The Bundeswehr soldier has turned himself in. Reporter Sebastian Duden reports live. (01.03.2024) 5 min
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NDR 1 Lower Saxony | Current | 21.08.2024 | 12:00
