Enlarge image
Commemoration at the crime scene in Illerkirchberg
Photo: Christoph Schmidt / dpa
Almost three months after the knife attack on two girls in Illerkirchberg, Baden-Württemberg, charges were brought against the alleged perpetrator.
The 27-year-old is accused of murder and attempted murder with dangerous bodily harm, as the Ulm public prosecutor announced on Tuesday.
The asylum seeker from Eritrea is said to have insidiously attacked a 14-year-old girl and her 13-year-old friend on the way to school on December 5 with a knife.
The 14-year-old died from her injuries and her friend was taken to hospital with serious injuries.
According to prosecutors, he spontaneously decided to kill her
The prosecutor also named a possible motive.
The man had intended to force the immigration authorities to issue an identity document.
That's why he took the knife with him when he left the house in the morning.
He took it out of his backpack and put it in his jacket pocket as the two girls, two friends aged 13 and 14, walked by.
The suspect is said to have assumed that the two had seen the knife.
That's why he spontaneously decided to kill her, according to the prosecutor.
He wanted to prevent the girls from calling the police and thwarting his plan.
He briefly greeted the teenagers, exploited the element of surprise and stabbed the 13-year-old's upper body.
The blade was deflected by a rib, which is why the girl was not critically injured.
She was able to escape and survived.
The other girl, however, is said to have been pushed to the ground and then stabbed several times in the back and the back of the head.
After that he went back into the house.
The 14-year-old later died in hospital.
After the crime, the 27-year-old may have inflicted various stab and cut injuries on himself with the intention of committing suicide, it was said.
He was arrested shortly afterwards.
He already admitted to attacking the 14-year-old in January.
On the other hand, he could not remember the 13-year-old girl, the prosecutor said.
She accuses the man of malice and killing to enable another crime.
A preliminary psychiatric report showed that he was guilty.
The regional court in Ulm will now decide whether to admit the charges.
The 27-year-old is in custody.
swe/dpa/afp
