27-year-old charged with murder: fatal car attack on Berlin Wall Path
A 27-year-old is on trial in Potsdam after allegedly deliberately driving a car into several people. A cyclist died and further people were injured.
27-year-old charged with murder: fatal car attack on Berlin Wall Path
The trial of a 27-year-old man began on Thursday before the Potsdam regional court. He is accused of intentionally driving a car at four people in September of last year. A 49-year-old cyclist was killed and others survived with some suffering severe injuries.
The prosecution has charged the defendant with murder. The alleged incident occurred in the early morning of 7 September 2024. The man is said to have been in his 43-year-old cousin's vehicle. During the journey, an argument escalated. The younger man allegedly struck and strangled the driver. When the driver attempted to free himself, he bit off part of his finger. Following this, the cousin jumped out of the car.
Alone in the vehicle, the 27-year-old allegedly moved to the driver's seat and drove at speed along the southern border between Berlin and Brandenburg. According to the prosecution, he first hit a pedestrian, who was hurled onto a grass verge and suffered multiple fractures. A woman then allegedly came in front of the vehicle and was dragged several metres. She suffered severe injuries but survived. A third person managed to escape by jumping to the side.
Finally, the defendant allegedly attacked a cyclist. According to the prosecution, this man did not see the attack coming. He was struck with full force, thrown over the roof and suffered a tear to his aorta. He died at the scene. The day before the trial began, he would have turned 50 years old.
At the opening of the proceedings, only the indictment was read aloud. The defence counsel stated that his client wished to make a statement. The defendant's testimony is scheduled for 10 July.
A central issue in the trial is the mental health of the man. Medical experts assume he suffered from paranoid schizophrenia, which may have completely eliminated his ability to control his behaviour at the time of the alleged offence. The 27-year-old is currently housed in a psychiatric facility. The prosecution considers permanent placement in such a hospital to be the appropriate course of action.
Source: DIE ZEIT / dpa-infocom
Source: Google News AT — Crime (de)