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Eric X. in Cologne in court
Photo: Rolf Vennenbernd / dpa
The Cologne district court has found the so-called Siegauen rapist Eric X. guilty of particularly serious arson.
The 35-year-old had set fire to his cell in the prison in Cologne in February 2018.
Now the court has increased the already final sentence by the Bonn district court to ten years in prison by ten months.
The 35-year-old is in jail because in 2017 he attacked a young couple while camping in Bonn's Siegaue, threatened them with pruning shears and raped a young camper.
The act had caused horror nationwide.
According to the verdict, the rejected asylum seeker from Ghana had set fire to the mattress in his cell.
X. had finally made an emergency call and was rescued from the burning cell by a prison officer.
The cell was destroyed by the fire and had to be renovated.
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The court found "hatred of yourself, hatred of the prison management" as the motive for the arson.
Since the conviction by the Bonn Regional Court there has been a "great lack of prospects" on the part of the accused.
The court justified the moderate surcharge with the serious injuries caused to the accused by the fire: "He is actually the victim of the crime." 21 percent of his skin was burned and he had to undergo several skin transplants.
The man is still marked by the considerable injuries to this day.
He cannot stand upright because of the massive scarring on his neck and back.
An appeal against the judgment is possible.
ptz / dpa