Germany: Teenagers sentenced to jail for Mistelbach murders
January 23, 2023
A court in the southern German city of Bayreuth on Monday sentenced a 19-year-old man to 13 years and six months in prison for stabbing the parents of his girlfriend to death early last year.
The now 17-year-old elder daughter of the slain couple, who were both doctors, was also sentenced to nine years and six months' detention. She was found to have assisted in the killing in the village of Mistelbach, near Bayreuth in the state of Bavaria.
The daughter was said to have taken part in planning the murders and to have prevented her siblings from intervening or alerting police while the stabbings were taking place.
Defense lawyers had called for her acquittal, saying there was no evidence of her complicity in the crime.
Both defendants were sentenced according to juvenile law and the trial was largely held without any public attendance because of their age at the time of the offenses.
What happened in Mistelbach?
The two murder victims, a man aged 51 and his wife, aged 47, were found dead by police who had been alerted by neighbors after cries were heard from the house.
The couple had been living in the house with their four children, all aged under 18.
The man who has now been sentenced for the murder turned himself into police following the killings.
What did the court say in delivering the verdict?
In its sentencing, the court met the demands of the prosecutors.
Judge Andrea Deyerling said that the daughter of the murdered couple had acted out of hatred toward her parents.
The daughter had reportedly often said that she wanted to kill her parents, claiming among other things that her father had beaten her — an accusation that the court dismissed.
Her mother had even wanted to take lessons in self defense to protect herself against the girl, the court was told.
The defense lawyer for the other accused said his client regretted what he had done deeply and had committed the crime only out of love for his girlfriend.
"If he had not met the accused, it would never have happened," the lawyer said.
tj/rc (dpa, AFP)
While you're here: Every Tuesday, DW editors round up what is happening in German politics and society. You can sign up here for the weekly email newsletter Berlin Briefing.