murder case
Lübcke’s murderer testifies as a witness in the investigative committee
For security reasons, Stephan Ernst is not questioned in the state parliament building, but in the Wiesbaden district court. photo
© Boris Roessler/dpa-Pool/dpa
In 2021, Stephan Ernst was sentenced to life imprisonment as the murderer of Walter Lübcke. Now he is to be questioned as a witness in the Lübcke investigative committee – but not in the state parliament itself.
The convicted murderer of the former Kassel district president Walter Lübcke will be questioned as a witness this Friday in the Lübcke investigative committee of the Hessian state parliament. The committee is to shed light on the role of the Hessian security authorities in the murder case and possible omissions.
The Higher Regional Court (OLG) Frankfurt had sentenced the right-wing extremist Stephan Ernst to life imprisonment for the murder of the CDU politician Lübcke in January 2021. The Higher Regional Court had considered it proven that Ernst had shot the politician in the head late on June 1, 2019 at home on his terrace at close range. The questioning of Ernst in the investigative committee should deal with, among other things, how he got hold of weapons and how he organized his shooting training.
For security reasons, he is not questioned in the state parliament building, but in the Wiesbaden district court. In addition, the relocation of the survey was also a question of piety: the murderer of the former MP Lübcke should not appear in the state parliament.
Contradictions and Enlightenment
During the trial, the judges were critical of Ernst’s fluctuating testimony and questioned his credibility. Christian Heinz (CDU), the chairman of the committee, therefore did not place too much hope in his statements before questioning the witness.
In contrast to the court process, the SPD’s approach is above all to clarify the networks behind the perpetrator, according to SPD chairman Günter Rudolph before the committee meeting. For example, it should be about Ernst’s connections in the right-wing extremist scene. Ernst’s statements are also likely to be a question of credibility in relation to his distancing from the scene, which he declared during the trial. During the proceedings before the Frankfurt Higher Regional Court, he had asked to be included in an opt-out program.
Ernst, who had described conflicting versions of the crime to the police and during the trial, was convicted as the sole perpetrator. A former friend and work colleague who was accused of aiding and abetting was acquitted of this charge due to lack of evidence. He, too, is to be questioned as a witness in the committee at the end of November.