A good eight months after a hostage-taking in the city center of Ulm, the trial against the alleged perpetrator has begun. The public prosecutor accuses the ex-soldier from Iserlohn in North Rhine-Westphalia of having taken several people hostage in a café on Münsterplatz on the evening of January 26. In court, the 44-year-old fully admitted the crime through his defense attorney and apologized. He said he had not intended to hurt anyone.
According to the prosecution, the ex-soldier threatened the hostages with a fake weapon that looked like it was real and asked them to call the police. His goal was to be shot by the special operations commando (SEK) during the hostage-taking. When he stepped out the door with a hostage after an hour and a half, the police shot the defendant in the upper body and face, thus ending the hostage-taking. All of the hostages, who were gradually released, remained unharmed.
The man is said to have diminished responsibility due to a state of mental emergency. Permanent placement in a psychiatric hospital is therefore an option. He is accused of coercion, among other things. A verdict could be handed down in mid-October. The defendant has been in custody since the crime.
© dpa-infocom, dpa:240909-930-227187/1
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