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Police operation at the Bonn Regional Court (photo from Tuesday)
Photo: STEPHANE NITSCHKE / REUTERS
A severed head discovered in front of the Bonn district court belongs to a man who died of natural causes.
This was the result of the forensic examination of the body of the 44-year-old, the Bonn police said.
The separation of the head from the rest of the body was not the cause of death, the investigators said.
At that time, the 44-year-old had already died of natural causes as a result of a serious illness.
The rest of the dead man's body was also discovered on Tuesday a good kilometer away near the banks of the Rhine on the edge of a park.
The police initially arrested a 38-year-old man for a suspected homicide – he is still in custody.
Now the investigation would continue against the man on suspicion of disturbing the peace of the dead, it said.
Both men are said to come from the homeless scene.
Suspect provided information on where the body was found
The suspect was arrested in the immediate vicinity of the regional court.
According to police, he has not yet testified about the allegations.
He had given the clue to where the rest of the body was found.
The suspect is known to the police primarily in connection with narcotics crime.
A possible tool has not yet been found.
The Bonn Regional Court, in front of whose main portal the severed head was discovered, was open again on Wednesday.
Business operations continue as normal, said a court spokeswoman.
When the head was discovered by passers-by early Tuesday evening, the court in central Bonn was already closed to the public.
The doors of the main portal were also closed.
The forensics team had hung up a dark tarpaulin in the entrance area.
According to the dpa news agency, nothing was to be seen on Wednesday.
Barrier tapes were still hanging where the body was found.
fek/dpa
