Sven H. is a fan of TSV 1860 Munich and apparently also likes to promote the lions. But not loudly, but rather quietly with graffiti on the walls. Because this is forbidden, he sat in a dock in the Munich district court this week. The public prosecutor charged him, among other things, with damaging property in eight cases. Sven H. is said to have sprayed black paint on five DB Regio S-Bahn wagons “1860”.
In all cases, the digits were as high as a man and covered an area of around ten square meters – so they couldn’t be overlooked. In addition, the 29-year-old clerk is said to have sprayed the number “1860” on a house and garage wall and on a balcony – in Giesing, very close to the Sixties Stadium, where Sven H. also lived until recently has.
On January 24 last year, however, the lion fan was caught in the act of spraying by two security men from Deutsche Bahn’s “Graffiti Task Force” at the train station in Deisenhofen. They noticed Sven H. and another man that night. Not just because it was past midnight. There was also a curfew due to the corona pandemic. So the security men watched the two with binoculars and thermal imaging cameras and saw them standing in front of two S-Bahn carriages and making “spraying movements” there.
After shouting “stop,” one of the security guards outside the district court said the suspects ran away. While one was able to escape, the accused “run straight into his arms” when he fled, explained the other railway employee. H. had a spray can of black paint in his hand. However, the security forces could not see what he had sprayed on the wagons.
They later found the contours of the abbreviation “TSV” in blue on one wagon and “1860” in black on the other. Since it was unclear which of the two men had sprayed which letters or numbers on the wagons, Sven H.’s defense attorney only said that his client had participated in the act of January 24, 2021 in Deisenhofen. However, the accused will not provide any information on the other allegations made by the public prosecutor.
The damage amounts to a total of almost 7000 euros
The damage caused by the graffiti on the S-Bahn wagons and on the house and garage walls in Giesing amounts to almost 7,000 euros. For the representative of the public prosecutor’s office, it was clear at the end of the taking of evidence that all “1860 graffiti” on all S-Bahn wagons went to Sven H.’s account. However, it cannot be determined with certainty whether he also sprayed the graffiti in Giesing. She demanded a year’s imprisonment on probation and a fine of 5,000 euros for the relevant clerk. His lawyer pleaded for a fine of 3,600 euros and said his client could only be proven to have participated in the crime of January 24, 2021 in Deisenhofen.
In the end, the presiding judge at the district court imposed a fine of 120 daily rates of 50 euros (6,000 euros) for damage to property. It is certain, she said in the verdict, that the accused took part in the crime in January 2021. It is questionable, however, whether he can really be held responsible for the other four “1860 graffiti” on S-Bahn wagons and those in Giesing. The court therefore acquitted Sven H. on these points.