After fatal shots at Kusel: trial against suspected poachers begins

Created: 06/21/2022, 11:04 am

By: Sandra Kathe

Because he wanted to cover up his poaching, a 39-year-old is said to have murdered a police officer and her colleague in Kusel.

Now the trial against him begins.

Kaiserslautern – A little more than four months after the fatal shots at a 24-year-old police officer and her 29-year-old colleague, the trial against the alleged perpetrator and his accomplices began in the western Palatinate.

In addition to the question of motives and the exact course of events, the murder trial also deals with the criminal responsibility of the accused Andreas S., which psychiatric reports in the run-up to the trial have determined without reservation.

With the act of January 31, 2022, the 39-year-old is said to have tried to cover up his involvement in poaching, according to the indictment.

The accused and his accomplice were noticed by the two police forces on a patrol near Kusel in the Palatinate after they had seen their box van parked on the side of the road and the loading area "full of wild animals".

When trying to control the two, Andreas S. is said to have first shot the police officer "from a short distance in the head" with a shotgun and then murdered her colleague with a hunting rifle.

Murder of police patrol in Rhineland-Palatinate: charges of murder and poaching

When the accused noticed a short time later that the woman was still alive and had fallen into the street with serious injuries, according to the indictment, he is said to have fired a second shot from the shotgun and killed the 24-year-old.

He and his 33-year-old accomplice then fled the scene, but were arrested a few hours after the crime in nearby Saarland.

The victims have been commemorated at numerous commemorative events since the bloody deed.

Now the trial against the alleged perpetrator and his accomplices begins in Kaiserslautern.

(symbol photo) © Boris Roessler/dpa

The prosecutor accuses the accused of two murders, among other things, "out of greed and to cover up a crime".

The 33-year-old is accused, among other things, of attempting to avoid punishment because he helped to cover up the tracks.

In addition, both are accused of joint commercial poaching.

Killed police forces near Kusel: trial in Kaiserslautern with four appointments

The court hearing against the alleged perpetrators began on Tuesday (June 22) at 9 a.m.

The trial in Kaiserslautern has 14 appointments until September 9th, several experts and a large number of witnesses have been invited to clarify the crime, which has caused horror across the country.

(ska with dpa/AFP)