He had filmed himself and broadcast his crimes live.
The right-wing extremist, author of what came close to becoming Germany's worst post-war anti-Semitic bombing last year, was unsurprisingly sentenced to life in prison on Monday by a German court.
Stephan Balliet, a 28-year-old German, who during the nearly six-month court hearing repeatedly proclaimed his anti-Semitism, was found guilty of two murders and several attempted murders during his attack on a synagogue in Halle (Saxony -Anhalt) in the middle of the religious festival of Yom Kippur, October 9, 2019.
During the delivery of the verdict by the president of the court in Magdeburg, Ursula Mertens, the man with the shaved head dressed in black and wearing a scarf, remained stoic with a blank stare.
His life imprisonment was accompanied by a minimum preventive detention of 15 years, after which it will be very difficult to obtain his release.
"Without this famous armored door, he would have committed a massacre"
This man had in full religious festival of Yom Kippur, in October 2019, stormed the synagogue of Halle, where there were 52 faithful.
Unable to enter due to resistance from the door, he lashed out at passers-by, killing a woman and injuring several others, before killing a young man in a snack bar.
"Without this famous armored door, he would have committed a massacre", explained Ursula Mertens during the verdict.
The accused was inspired by Brenton Tarrant, the author of the bloody racist attacks (51 dead) committed a few months earlier against two mosques in Christchurch in New Zealand, who had broadcast his crimes live, which he also made.
READ ALSO>
Halle attack: why social networks cannot prevent the dissemination of violent videos
Throughout his trial, the accused never expressed the slightest remorse and, on several occasions, had to be called to order by the president of the court for his conspiratorial, racist, misogynistic and denialist remarks.
He even claimed responsibility for his actions.
Attacking the synagogue "was not a mistake" because "they are my enemies," he said.
Words that triggered the anger of many civil parties.
They had to relive the day of October 9, 2019 during a hearing where the murderous journey of Stephan Balliet was re-broadcast: armed to the teeth and dressed in military uniform, he broadcast his assault live during which he denied the existence of the Shoah and attacked the Jews.
Morning essentials newsletter
A tour of the news to start the day
Subscribe to the newsletterAll newsletters
VIDEO. Shooting in Germany: two dead near the synagogue in Halle
"We are relieved that it stops today, it was long enough and trying," said Mark Lupschitz, lawyer for nine civil parties, thanking the court for not having made the trial a showcase for the extremist of right.
Crimes and misdemeanors targeting the Jewish community in Germany increase by 13%
The president of the Central Council of Jews of Germany, Josef Schuster, said in a statement that this verdict was "an important day for Germany", indicating "clearly that the murderous hatred against the Jews knows zero tolerance".
Crimes and misdemeanors targeting the Jewish community in Germany rose 13% in 2019, with 2,032 acts listed.
The Halle attack also took place against the backdrop of an upsurge in far-right terrorism, including the assassination last year of a pro-migrant politician and an attack in Hanau that killed nine people of foreign origin. .
In Halle, after failing to break down the synagogue door, the extremist shot dead a passer-by and later a man in a kebab restaurant, targeted for his immigrant clientele.
The police finally arrested him after a chase in which he injured several other people.
