Crime - Witnesses wanted after fatal attack in Bad Oeynhausen
After the fatal attack on a 20-year-old in the Kurpark of Bad Oeynhausen, the police are still looking for witnesses of the crime. The investigation is "running high," a spokesperson of the Bielefeld Police stated in response to an inquiry. The police are calling on witnesses again, asking them to provide photos and videos that may contain clues about the crime. They can report to any police station or the Bielefeld Police, the spokesperson added.
An 18-year-old suspect is in custody. He has not yet confessed to the charges of manslaughter and grievous bodily harm, the police and prosecutor announced on Thursday.
According to the initial investigation, the violence against the victim came exclusively from the 18-year-old suspect, who is a Syrian national and resides in Bad Oeynhausen. He has previously been noted for violent, property, and drug-related offenses.
The suspect was known to the authorities
The suspect had come to Germany in 2016 as part of a family reunification and had initially lived in Pforzheim before moving to Bad Oeynhausen last year, according to the "Bild" newspaper, citing the responsible prosecutor Christoph Mackel. He was known to the authorities but had not been convicted before. "There were investigative proceedings against him, but they never led to a conviction," Mackel told "Bild."
According to the police, at least three other Germans aged 18 are part of the suspect's group. The number of people involved in the crime and what other offenses occurred are part of the ongoing investigation. It is also not yet clear what the background and trigger of the fight were.
The autopsy of the 20-year-old confirmed the initial assumptions that he was severely beaten with several blows and kicks to the head, causing his later death in the hospital.
The attack on the 20-year-old and his 19-year-old companion occurred in the early hours of Sunday night. In the city center, there was a graduation party and an inner-city party that evening. According to a city spokesperson, it was very crowded at the time of the incident.
Violent crime sparks political debate
The violent crime in the eastern Westphalian Bad Oeynhausen fueled the political debate on the expulsion of serious criminals to countries like Afghanistan or Syria. North Rhine-Westphalia's Minister-President Hendrik Wüst (CDU) said: "This perpetrator must be brought to justice." Germany needs "to get better at deporting such intensive criminals, violent criminals who are not German citizens."
The deputy SPD Bundestag faction leader Dirk Wiese told the "Welt" newspaper: "The perpetrator must be held accountable for this under the full force of the law."
The incident in Bad Oeynhausen's Kurpark, resulting in bodily injury and ultimately leading to the young victim's death, has sparked a debate around expelling serious criminals from Germany, specifically to countries like Afghanistan and Syria. This act of violence took place in a Spa Park, amidst a crowded city center where there was a graduation party and an inner-city event. Witnesses are still being sought by the Bielefeld Police to provide any evidence related to the crime. The public prosecutor's office in North Rhine-Westphalia is closely monitoring the investigation, while the suspect, a Syrian national, remains in custody without confession to the charges of manslaughter and grievous bodily harm.
