Murder trial 41 years after crime: proceedings in Ulm against 70-year-old
More than four decades after the death of a woman in Deggingen, murder proceedings begin at Ulm Regional Court. DNA evidence led to the conviction of the suspect.
Murder charge 41 years after the act: trial in Ulm against 70-year-old
More than four decades after the violent death of a 31-year-old woman, murder proceedings began on Tuesday at Ulm Regional Court against a 70-year-old from Schwendi in Biberach district. This is reported by swr.de citing the court. The Ulm prosecutor's office accuses the defendant of raping and killing the woman in March 1985 in Deggingen in Göppingen district.
According to investigations, the man is said to have picked up the woman in his car at the time and driven her to a forest path near Deggingen. There he is said to have raped her, strangled her in the process, and then struck her head multiple times with a stone. According to the prosecutor's office, it cannot be ruled out that he also ran over the woman with his vehicle. Walkers discovered the woman's body unclothed and bound at the legs next to a forest path – the case then remained unsolved for decades.
According to the prosecutor's office, the decisive breakthrough came from genetic analyses. The basis was a DNA trace already secured in 1985. In early November 2025, investigators searched the house and property of the suspect in Schwendi and confiscated numerous pieces of evidence. A reassessment of existing evidence, a forensic medical report, and the comparison of DNA traces further substantiated the suspicion, the authority stated.
In mid-April, the 70-year-old was arrested without resistance according to the prosecuting authority. On the same day, a judge ordered investigative custody. Six trial days are scheduled for the proceedings; a verdict could be reached on 11 November.
Source: Google News AT — Crime (de)