Crime - "Last word" for Thomas Drach - possible verdict
The verdict in the trial against Thomas Drach for several cash-in-transit robberies could be reached on Thursday. On the 100th day of the trial at Cologne District Court, the Reemtsma kidnapper will first have the opportunity for the defendant's "last word" (9.15 a.m.). The chamber will then announce whether it will pass sentence on the same day or schedule a separate date.
The trial against Germany's most famous felon has been running for almost two years under high security precautions. The court building is cordoned off on every day of the trial. Drach is usually flown in by helicopter from Cologne prison.
Attempted murder and spectacular robberies
According to the indictment, the German is alleged to have committed four spectacular robberies of cash transporters in Cologne, Frankfurt am Main and Limburg in Hesse in 2018 and 2019. The 63-year-old is also charged with attempted murder: In two of the crimes, he is alleged to have shot at cash carriers, and the two men suffered serious injuries. Drach denies all charges.
The public prosecutor's office has demanded a prison sentence of 15 years for Drach, followed by preventive detention. This would mean that he would be transferred to a secure detention center after serving his sentence, where he would remain behind bars. In her plea, the public prosecutor considered it "proven beyond doubt" that Drach committed three of the accused robberies and stole almost 142,000 euros. Only the crime in Limburg could not be proven.
The defense lawyers requested acquittal for their client. Drach had not been recognized at any of the crime scenes or identified by witnesses.
In 1996, Drach had kidnapped Jan Philipp Reemtsma, heir to the Hamburg tobacco dynasty Reemtsma, and released him after 33 days - for a ransom of 15 million German marks and 12.5 million Swiss francs. He was sentenced to fourteen and a half years in prison for the crime.
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- Despite the ongoing trial in Cologne, Drach, the notorious 'reemtsma hijacker', is still transported to the court under strict security measures from his prison in Cologne.
- The so-called 'money transporter robberies' in Cologne, Frankfurt am Main, and Limburg in North Rhine-Westphalia and Hesse, which Thomas Drach is accused of, have shaken Germany's criminality landscape.
- During the trial, it was mentioned that Drach allegedly targeted several cash transporters in Cologne, and he is also charged with attempting to murder two cash carriers in these incidents.
- Drach's lawyer argued that their client should be acquitted due to a lack of recognition at crime scenes and absence of witnesses to identify him.
- In the 1990s, Drach had been imprisoned for more than a decade, following his involvement in a high-profile hostage situation in Hamburg, where he had kidnapped Jan Philipp Reemtsma, heir to the tobacco dynasty Reemtsma, and received a substantial ransom.
- The public prosecutor at the trial in Cologne demanded a 15-year prison sentence for Drach, followed by preventive detention, citing indisputable evidence of his participation in three robberies and nearly 142,000 euros in stolen money.
- Although Thomas Drach's trial has received widespread attention in Germany, other pressing matters, such as severe floods in numerous places across the country, continue to pose challenges for the German people.
Source: www.stern.de
