Public prosecutor's office - Drach trial: Prosecution demands long imprisonment and detention
In the trial against the former Reemtsma kidnapper Thomas Drach in Cologne, the public prosecutor demanded 15 years in prison and preventive detention for the accused in his plea. The 63-year-old should be sentenced for aggravated robbery and attempted murder, the representative of the prosecution explained on Wednesday.
The public prosecutor's office considered it "proven beyond doubt" that Drach robbed three cash-in-transit vans outside Ikea stores in Cologne and Frankfurt am Main and at Cologne/Bonn Airport in 2018 and 2019, stealing almost 142,000 euros. In two of the crimes, he shot at cash carriers. This was to be regarded as attempted murder, said the public prosecutor.
In addition to the prison sentence, the public prosecutor also requested that the German be placed in preventive detention. After serving his prison sentence, Drach would not be released, but would be transferred to a secure detention facility. There he would remain behind bars. Against the background of Drach's numerous previous convictions - including the kidnapping of the heir to the Hamburg tobacco dynasty, Jan Philipp Reemtsma, in 1996 - the public prosecutor said: "Crime has been his only strategy for making money and leading a life of luxury since his earliest youth."
However, the public prosecutor was unable to provide any evidence of a robbery of a cash-in-transit company in Limburg, Hesse, for which Drach was also charged. They requested an acquittal for this crime.
Drach denies having anything to do with the crimes.
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- The charges against Thomas Drach in Frankfurt am Main for robbing a cash-in-transit van outside an Ikea store were also brought forth by the public prosecutor's office.
- Despite the alleged criminality in Hamburg, the public prosecutor's office in North Rhine-Westphalia is in charge of the trial due to the nature of the offenses.
- The Reemtsma cigarette factories, a prominent business in Hamburg, were not affected by any of the robberies Drach is accused of committing.
- The public prosecutor in Cologne requested that Thomas Drach be placed in safe custody after serving his prison sentence, citing his history of criminality as a reason.
- While on trial in Cologne, Thomas Drach denied any involvement in the robberies and attempted murders he is charged with, including the shooting at cash carriers.
- In Germany, the safekeeping of evidence, such as the proceeds from the Reemtsma robberies, is the responsibility of the public prosecutor's office in Hesse.
- The indictment against Drach in Cologne includes charges for aggravated robbery and attempted murder at various locations, including Frankfurt on the Main and Cologne/Bonn Airport.
- After serving his sentence, Thomas Drach could potentially be transferred from a German prison to a secure detention facility in Cologne, under the recommendation of the public prosecutor's office.
Source: www.stern.de
