Life sentence sought: murder of US tourist Amy Lopez in Koblenz set for verdict
Nearly 32 years after the murder of Amy Lopez, prosecutors in Koblenz are calling for a life sentence. The verdict is expected on Friday.
Prosecution seeks maximum sentence in Amy Lopez case
Nearly 32 years after the murder of 24-year-old American Amy Lopez, the verdict is imminent. As reported by Google News DE — Crime (de), prosecutors at the Koblenz regional court called for a life sentence for murder and also determined that there were particularly grave circumstances of guilt. The 81-year-old German defendant had fully admitted to the crime at the start of the trial through his lawyer Volker Klein.
For the prosecution, there are "no remaining doubts whatsoever" with regard to forensic investigations either. The lawyers for the co-plaintiffs, Amy Lopez's family, largely aligned themselves with the prosecution's request.
Chronic rape disposition, but full criminal capacity
The presiding judge Rupert Stehlin closed the evidence presentation before the closing arguments. According to an expert's assessment, the defendant has a chronic rape disposition — however, this was not classified as an illness, as prosecutor Julian Gislai explained. This meant the man was fully criminally responsible.
The prosecution accused the defendant of having "treacherously killed a human being to satisfy his sexual urge and otherwise from base motives". He had wanted to live out his "depraved sexual fantasies" "at any cost", according to the closing argument.
Crime in September 1994 near Ehrenbreitstein Fortress
According to the indictment, the man lured Amy Lopez in September 1994 near Ehrenbreitstein Fortress into a remote, empty building. There he restrained the 24-year-old, sexually abused her and killed her with nine knife wounds. Shortly after the crime, playing children discovered the corpse.
The decisive breakthrough came only decades later: old DNA traces were analysed using new technical methods and linked to the 81-year-old. He was then arrested at the end of February 2026 in a nursing home in the Koblenz area.
Father's letter: "The final judgment rests with God"
On the third day of trial, the courtroom was once again well filled. The defendant followed the proceedings at times attentively, at times with his eyes closed — for him the stakes were potentially his remaining life, as his lawyer had previously noted.
During the few days of trial, proceedings revolved largely around the defendant himself: his state of health, previous convictions, biography. Amy Lopez barely came up for discussion. This changed during the closing argument of the co-plaintiffs' representatives, when lawyer Kathrin Kienle read out a letter from her father.
Amy had been a girl who had to come to terms with her mother's death early on — and yet had travelled through the world with curiosity and joie de vivre. She had dreamed of working for "Doctors Without Borders". Her ashes were buried alongside those of her mother. "When Amy was killed, a part of me died too," her father's letter stated. The years-long search for the perpetrator had long seemed hopeless, closure unthinkable. He would appear together with his son at the planned verdict announcement on Friday. He did not want to pass personal judgment on the defendant: "The final judgment rests with God."
According to observations in the courtroom, the defendant barely registered these words. His eyes closed, his head sank to his chest. Only a fit of coughing woke him again shortly afterwards.
No compassion, no public remorse
Both the prosecution and the co-plaintiffs' representatives emphasised the emotionless behaviour of the defendant throughout the trial. He had shown "no genuine compassion" and no public remorse, said prosecutor Gislai. Defence lawyer Klein countered that he had advised his client: "You cannot apologise for murder." According to Klein, his client expressed remorse to him in private.
Particularly grave circumstances of guilt of little practical significance
A life sentence is the highest penalty in German criminal law and is imposed most frequently for murder. It can be suspended on probation at the earliest after 15 years — the defendant would then be 96 years old. If the court, as requested here, determines that there are particularly grave circumstances of guilt, early release is only possible in exceptional cases.
Defence lawyer Klein admitted that whilst the question of particularly grave circumstances of guilt was a legal matter, it was of little practical significance given the defendant's advanced age. In principle, he agreed with the prosecution's assessment.
The verdict is to be announced on Friday, already after the third day of trial.
Source: Google News DE — Crime (de)