- Ukrainian basketball players stabbed: trial started
The violent deaths of two young Ukrainian basketball players in Oberhausen in February shocked the nation. On Monday, the trial against four defendants began at the Regional Court of Essen. The defendants, now aged 14, 15, and 16, two of whom hold German citizenship and two Syrian, are charged with malicious murder before the juvenile chamber.
Half an hour before the start of the non-public hearing, the parents of the deceased Ukrainians sat nervously on a bench near the courtroom. "They are heavily traumatized," explained their lawyer Alice Scaglione. It will certainly be difficult for her clients to face the people who are allegedly responsible for the deaths of their children. "Of course, they wish for the harshest punishment possible," Scaglione added.
Prosecution: Attack was due to victims being Ukrainian
The incident occurred in the evening of February 10. The two Ukrainian basketball players were on their way to Düsseldorf when, according to the indictment, they met the four defendants on the bus. The defendants allegedly immediately decided to attack and injure the two friends after they got off the bus. According to the prosecution, the only reason for this plan was that the victims were Ukrainian.
After everyone had left the bus at Oberhausen Central Station, the defendants allegedly immediately attacked and stabbed the two victims. The 17-year-old died later that evening during an emergency operation in the hospital. His one-year-older teammate and friend died from septic multiorgan failure ten days later.
Three of the four defendants are said to have committed multiple crimes before the bloody incident. "This also needs to be clarified," said co-plaintiff lawyer Scaglione on the sidelines of the trial's opening. For the trial, eleven sessions have been scheduled until November 21.
The trial against the four defendants, including two with German citizenship, is being held at the [The Court of First Instance], specifically the juvenile chamber, due to their age. Following the incident, it was revealed that the victims were Ukrainian was a perceived reason for the attack, as stated by the prosecution.
