Death after a police operation: the body shows signs of violence

Created: 05/04/2022Updated: 05/04/2022, 18:45

Andreas Stenger (r), Romeo Schüssler (M), and Siegfried Kollmar (l) provide information on the current status of the investigation at a press conference.

© Dieter Leder/dpa

The death of a man after a police operation in Mannheim continues to trigger heavy criticism.

The police defend themselves, but they also promise openness and enlightenment.

However, the most important question does not seem to be resolved any time soon.

According to the State Criminal Police Office, the numerous unanswered questions about the death of a man during a police check in Mannheim could only be answered in six to eight weeks.

According to the Baden-Württemberg State Criminal Police Office (LKA), traces of blunt force have been found on the body.

However, these were "of low intensity," said LKA President Andreas Stenger on Wednesday.

It is still unclear whether the 47-year-old died a violent or a natural death.

The man also had heart failure.

The man was first revived last Monday after the collapse, but later died in the hospital.

According to the police and the public prosecutor's office, he is said to have previously resisted.

The two police officers involved are now being investigated on suspicion of causing bodily harm in office resulting in death.

According to the Mannheim police chief Siegfried Kollmar, they have been suspended from duty.

The men have been in the police force for several years.

"These are colleagues who already have one or two years of service under their belt," said Stenger.

According to the public prosecutor's office, the officials have not yet commented on the process.

To his knowledge, they have not yet become conspicuous, said the senior public prosecutor at the Mannheim public prosecutor's office, Romeo Schuessler.

Since the man's death, the police have faced severe criticism.

Videos have been circulating online showing a police officer beating a man lying on the ground in the head.

It remains unclear why the police officers did not activate their body cams on their bodies during the operation.

According to the LKA and the public prosecutor's office, a doctor from the Central Institute for Mental Health in Mannheim first informed the police about the 47-year-old patient who was in need of help.

The two officers and the doctor were looking for the man and found him in the city center.

"He certainly didn't follow the officials' instructions to stop," said LKA chief Stenger.

You can also see on the videos that he resisted "that there are movements, that there is beating".

But one should not be fooled by individual video sequences, he said.

According to the LKA, around 30 witnesses have reported so far.

In addition, more than 70 videos were made available - according to the LKA President, it is still unclear to what extent some of these were identical videos.

According to the police, 150 procedures were also initiated due to sharp comments on social media.

From the point of view of Mannheim President Siegfried Kollmar, the case will cost the police a lot of trust in the city.

"We will need a few weeks and months before we have regained trust," said Kollmar on Wednesday in Mannheim.

"Our efforts got cracked."

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According to the authorities, the deceased 47-year-old was a German citizen with Croatian roots.

The man was naturalized in September 2017.

dpa