Life imprisonment after arson attack on emergency services in Ratingen
The court convicted the defendant of attempted murder and other offenses. With the sentence, the court followed the prosecution's demand. The defense had not formulated a specific sentence in its plea, but doubted whether the defendant could have guessed the extent of the fire he had caused.
P. had poured several liters of petrol in his apartment in the direction of a policewoman and ignited it after emergency services had come to his apartment. They had been called by the property management because neighbors had not seen P.'s mother for some time and the mailbox was overflowing.
On the day of the crime, a police officer and her colleague, as well as seven other emergency services, approached the apartment on the tenth floor. Despite ringing the doorbell, no one answered, so the emergency services forced open the door, which was barricaded from the inside with water boxes.
There was a strong smell of decomposition coming from the apartment, P. is said to have lived next to his mother 's body for several weeks. While the officers were already in the apartment, the accused then poured four to six liters of petrol in the direction of the police officer and threw a burning piece of textile after her, according to the verdict.
This resulted in an explosive ignition, with the flames filling the areas of the apartment entrance and the arcade in front of the apartment. The emergency services fled outside through the stairwell, some of them on fire. Eight of them probably suffered permanent damage to their skin. Some of the firefighters were in mortal danger for weeks.
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- The defendant, found liable for the arson attack, faces a lifelong ban from any operational force or emergency service due to the gravity of his crimes.
- The Düsseldorf Regional Court, in its ruling, deemed the public prosecutor's office's request for a life sentence appropriate, given the severity of the fire attack.
- In response to the intense smell of decomposition, the emergency services, including seven other services, proceeded with caution, fearing a potential 'fire attack' or other hazardous situation in the apartment.
- On the fateful day, the Court spokeswoman announced that the mother of the defendant was discovered dead inside the apartment, which added a new layer of complexity to the case.
- The verdict stated that the fire attack was intentional and was aimed at the operational force, with the defendant being liable for the permanent skin damage suffered by eight emergency services personnel.
- The fire attack on the emergency services in Ratingen, as per the court's decision, has resulted in a landmark case with significant consequences, including lifetime restrictions for the defendant.
Source: www.stern.de
