Rape in Friedland: Rejected asylum seeker from Benin remanded in custody
In Friedland, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, a 24-year-old man from Benin is alleged to have dragged a 27-year-old woman into a bush and raped her on 9 August. Authorities did not inform the public of the incident until almost four weeks after the crime.
Alleged rape in Friedland: suspect arrested the following day
In the small town of Friedland in the Mecklenburgische Seenplatte district, a 27-year-old German woman is alleged to have become a victim of rape on 9 August. According to WELT, citing the Nordkurier and NDR, at around 14:30 on a Sunday afternoon, the suspect pulled the woman off the street into a bush in the middle of the town and raped her there.
A 24-year-old national of Benin was arrested, whose asylum application had already been rejected. As detailed information about the perpetrator's appearance was available, suspicion against the man quickly hardened after investigations, interrogations and forensic examination by the criminal police. The police discovered the suspect again in Friedland the very next evening and arrested him. He has been in custody since then.
When asked by the Nordkurier why the public was not informed until almost four weeks after the alleged crime, the investigating authorities explained that a public appeal for witnesses would have jeopardised the investigative success and the imminent arrest. According to the Bild newspaper, investigators believe the 24-year-old did not expect to be identified.
According to the Nordkurier, the suspect was recently in Friedland on several occasions and in the vicinity of the shared accommodation there, although he was not registered there. He is said to have previously been in the Vorpommern-Greifswald district. Why he repeatedly came to Friedland remains unclear and is part of ongoing investigations, police said.
Although the man's asylum application was rejected, he is still legally entitled to remain in Germany: he has filed a lawsuit against the decision, and the appeal procedure has not yet been concluded. Police are currently providing no further information about the exact course of events and are referring to the protection of the victim.
Source: WELT