Augsburg contract killing: 30-year-old sentenced to life imprisonment
A 30-year-old has been sentenced to life imprisonment by the Augsburg Regional Court for contract killing of a mother of three children. The ex-partner is said to have commissioned the murder for 1,000 euros.
Life sentence for shooter – ex-partner as alleged mastermind remanded in custody
The Augsburg Regional Court has sentenced a 30-year-old man to life imprisonment for contract killing. According to BILD, the convicted man shot the 30-year-old mother of three children four times in the head in her flat in May 2025 – while two of her children were in the house.
"It was an execution of the mother before the eyes of the children – brutal and cruel," said presiding judge Michael Eberle at the pronouncement of sentence.
Eight-year-old daughter called her grandmother
The then eight-year-old daughter discovered her mother covered in blood on the floor and desperately called her grandmother. A one-and-a-half-year-old son was also in the house at the time of the offence. The girl witnessed the perpetrator and the shots that night in May 2025 – she thought the man was setting off fireworks, she later said when testifying as a witness. To spare her a direct encounter with the defendant, she was connected via video from another room of the court building. The child is undergoing therapy due to the consequences of the crime.
1,000 euros as payment for the murder
The criminal chamber is of the view that the 43-year-old ex-partner of the victim commissioned the crime out of jealousy. He is said to have obtained the murder weapon and ammunition and paid the defendant 1,000 euros as a reward. The convicted 30-year-old is the stepson of the 43-year-old from an earlier relationship.
The woman had separated from her ex-partner about a month before the crime. Thereafter, the jealous 43-year-old is said to have first deployed his stepson as a kind of detective to watch her, before the murder plan came about. Judge Eberle described the ex-partner as "dominant", "manipulative" and "aggressive". Before and after the separation, he is said to have regularly humiliated and insulted the future victim.
Cap with blood traces incriminates the defendant
The trial lasted more than four months and was marked by numerous turns of events. At times the defendant remained silent, at times he had his lawyers reject all accusations. A cap with blood traces from the victim was secured from him. He initially explained that he had left it during repair work in the woman's flat and later retrieved it – but the criminal police established that this cap model was not even available for sale at the time in question.
Later, the defendant claimed that his stepfather had shot the woman himself and then given him the weapon to make it disappear. He had concealed the bloody pistol in his cap. The court did not believe this or any of the defendant's other statements.
Over the course of approximately 20 trial days, the evidence of a contract killing mounted up. "We turned over every stone more than once," said Judge Eberle. He had already caused a stir before the verdict when he publicly described the possibility of a contract killing with the ex-partner as mastermind as obvious.
Defence announces appeal
The defendant's lawyers had called for acquittal and are of the view that the ex-partner shot the woman himself. After the verdict, they announced an appeal to the Federal Court of Justice.
The court also established the particular gravity of the guilt of the convicted man. Should the verdict become final, release on probation after 15 years would be significantly more difficult.
Ex-partner in custody – indictment for incitement expected
The 43-year-old ex-partner was initially questioned as a witness in the trial. Shortly thereafter, he was arrested on suspicion of incitement to murder whilst the trial was still ongoing and has since been remanded in custody like his stepson.
Following the verdict, the public prosecutor's office is expected to indict the 43-year-old for incitement to murder. The Criminal Code provides that an instigator "shall be punished like the perpetrator" – the ex-partner thus faces life imprisonment as well.
Judge Eberle directed a direct appeal to the convicted man at the end of the trial: in the upcoming trial against the 43-year-old, he had the chance to explain the circumstances of the crime to the victim's children and parents. "Finally do the right thing, try it with the truth."
Demonstrations outside the court building
The crime shocked many people in Augsburg and far beyond. Activists demonstrated outside the court building against violence against women and femicide. Two of the victim's three children are from the relationship with the 43-year-old ex-partner.
Source: BILD