New findings in the Ayleen case: Police search the location of the body again

Created: 08/18/2022, 07:16

Riot police officers search the shore of the Teufelsee.

A drone from the police squadron is to survey the area from a bird's eye view.

A sonar boat and divers are also deployed.

© dpa

In the case of the 14-year-old Ayleen who was killed, the police again searched for traces around the Teufelsee.

Various items were seized.

Wetteraukreis – At the Teufelsee near Weckesheim in the Wetterau there is a concentrated mood on Wednesday morning.

The police are again searching the area around the lake.

The public prosecutor's office and the special commission "Lacus" hope to find further traces and evidence relevant to the case of the killed 14-year-old Ayleen.

On July 21, Ayleen disappeared from Gottenheim near Freiburg.

Her body was found in Teufelsee eight days later.

The investigations were handed over to the Gießen public prosecutor's office and the central Hesse police headquarters at the beginning of this week, as reported by fnp.de.

Case Ayleen: drone, boat and diver on site

According to spokesman Rehr, including DLRG, 50 to 60 emergency services have been on site at Teufelsee since 10 a.m.

The riot police, a police squadron with drones, the DLRG Frankfurt with a sonar boat and police divers from Rhineland-Palatinate supported the search.

Guido Rehr, spokesman for the police headquarters in Central Hesse, reports on new findings in the case: "Particularly digital findings have led to us searching Teufelsee and the surrounding area again." He cannot reveal exactly what findings these are.

"The riot police are searching the entire area around the lake," says Guido Rehr.

The officers systematically walk through bushes, grass and trees to find possible traces or evidence.

In all, over two dozen officers can be seen gradually circling the lake.

They stop in stages to be able to secure possible evidence.

This can be a bottle, a plastic bag or other objects.

Ayleen case: sonar boat scans seabed

The DLRG Frankfurt sonar boat drives across the lake and uses sonar technology to scan the bottom of the lake.

»The colleagues are looking for anomalies on the lake floor and marking these spots.

The divers then check it,” says Rehr.

Two men operate the drone in the small hut at the Teufelsee vantage point.

They each hold a device in their hands, on which they can follow the live recording of the drone.

They discuss where they want to fly the drone.

"You can see more from a bird's eye view than from the ground," he says.

Striking things are captured in photos.

The drone flies high above the lake, working with a lot of zoom here.

It always depends on the situation, at what height the drone flies, explains one of the two men who operate the drone.

Ayleen Case: Tampering with Traces?

The area around Teufelsee and Pfaffensee is under nature protection.

"We have coordinated our search with the nature conservation authorities," says Rehr.

It's always about finding a balance between investigating and protecting the animals.

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After Ayleen was found in Teufelsee three weeks ago, the crime scene was released again.

Could trace material be falsified as a result?

“People also came here, yes.

But we can tell the difference, for example using DNA,” says spokesman Rehr.

Ayleen case: "We want to make sure we've checked everything."

According to Rehr, no anomalies could be found on the lake floor in Teufelsee with the help of the sonar boat on Wednesday morning.

A relatively flat area was not navigable: »The divers had to check everything again.

We want to make sure we've checked everything."

According to Guido Rehr, however, the riot police found some objects: “It remains to be seen whether and to what extent these are related to the case.

That will now be evaluated first.« This procedure has been discussed with the public prosecutor's office.

Ayleen case: Pfaffensee also in the search radius

After the emergency services have searched the Teufelsee on foot, by boat, under water and in the air, the DLRG and some officials move over to the neighboring Pfaffensee.

»This one is still in the search radius because it is so close to Teufelsee.

We want to make sure that all traces are recorded.« Here, however, it is only a question of searching the water.

"If you then find something in the water, the machinery starts and everything is searched through," explains Rehr.

"The traces are like individual pieces of a jigsaw puzzle," he adds.

They hoped to find more pieces of the puzzle by searching the area around Teufelsee and Pfaffensee in order to solve the case of the killed Ayleen.

(Rebecca Fulle)

Ayleen case: A 29-year-old suspect is currently in custody.