North Rhine-Westphalia - Second trial begins after acid attack on manager: the search for the client
Bernhard Günther was on his way home after a Sunday jog with a bag of rolls when two masked men ambushed him in Haan near Düsseldorf. They poured highly concentrated sulphuric acid over the manager and seriously injured him. That was almost six years ago.
One of the perpetrators has now been sentenced to twelve years in prison. Another trial will now begin at the regional court on Wednesday. A 36-year-old man will then have to answer for his actions. He is alleged to have been the second masked man.
The 36-year-old had already been arrested once, Günther had even testified that he recognized him. Nevertheless, the man was released again because there was not enough evidence. But last spring, the handcuffs clicked again.
Second defendant remains silent so far
Investigators and the judiciary have so far remained tight-lipped about what has since strengthened the suspicions against him. Only this much: the Belgian, who had already been convicted, had mentioned names in his statement in the courtroom and described things that gave rise to further investigations, says a spokeswoman for the public prosecutor's office.
The presiding judge had already hinted at this in his reasons for the verdict: circumstances had been brought to light according to which Günther could have been right in recognizing the other man after all.
The judges cannot expect a confession. So far, the accused has remained silent about the allegations and is likely to continue to do so. "The charges are based solely on circumstantial evidence," says his defense lawyer Urban Slamal.
In contrast to the first trial, Bernhard Günter wants to stay away from the proceedings for the time being. "He wants to wait until he has completed his testimony on January 11," says his lawyer Martin Meinberg.
Client of the acid attack on Bernhard Günther unclear
The aim is still to find out who ordered the dastardly attack. He is not giving up hope, says Meinberg. After all, the proceedings had already been discontinued and now another suspected accomplice is facing a long prison sentence.
The tip-off about the accused and the convicted man had come from an unknown whistleblower who had provided the names in return for substantial payments of more than 150,000 euros. The energy company Innogy, where Günther was CFO at the time of the crime, had offered a large reward for the arrest of the perpetrators after the crime.
Günther, now 56, had to undergo several operations. Eyelids and parts of his facial skin were transplanted. According to Günther's lawyer Martin Meinberg, the attack was aimed at eliminating Günther as a professional competitor.
At the time, Günther was head of finance at the energy company Innogy, which was taken over by the Eon Group a few days later. He suspected a client from his professional environment as the mastermind, but did not give a name. Meinberg said that such an act was unique in business life.
The potential aim of the attack, to ruin Günther's future as a top manager, was not achieved: he returned to his position on the Executive Board after the attack. He is now CFO of the Finnish energy group Fortum, which employs more than 19,000 people.
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Bernhard Günther, who was the victim of the acid attack in Haan, suspected a client from his professional environment as the mastermind of the incident. Despite the attack targeting to ruin his future as a top manager, Günther returned to his position on the Executive Board after recovery.
The second defendant in the trial for the acid attack on Bernhard Günther in North Rhine-Westphalia remains silent, with his defense lawyer stating that the charges are based solely on circumstantial evidence.
Justice in North Rhine-Westphalia is pursuing the case of the acid attack on Bernhard Günther, aiming to uncover the client who ordered the attack against the energy company executive.
Source: www.stern.de
