The criminal trial against several defendants for throwing a firecracker in the Bundesliga game between Augsburg and Hoffenheim is to be led by the President of the Bavarian Football Association, Christoph Kern. Kern is the presiding judge of a criminal division of the Augsburg regional court, where the case will be heard from March 19.
According to investigators, 14 people were injured when the firecracker exploded in the Augsburg Arena on November 11th. According to the court, a total of four days of hearings are planned for the trial until mid-April. The main defendant, who is in custody, faces a prison sentence of several years.
Because of Kern’s voluntary work as a football official, the defense filed a motion for bias before the trial. But this had already been rejected, court spokeswoman Stefanie Nicka reported on Tuesday. Bayerischer Rundfunk first reported on it.
Because of the explosion, the game (1:1) was interrupted for several minutes in the fall. According to the public prosecutor’s office, a so-called Mamba firecracker, which had an “enormous detonation force”, was deliberately thrown from the visitors’ block in the direction of the playing field. There were also children among the 14 injured, and the spectators suffered blast trauma. In addition, FC Augsburg players who were warming up nearby were at risk. After the firecracker was ignited, the police arrested two 28-year-old men from the Göppingen area during the game. Both were taken into custody. One of the two was released after a few days because, following further investigations, he was no longer considered a direct accomplice.
The main accused is accused of causing an explosive explosion, for which, according to the public prosecutor’s office, the law in this case provides for two to 15 years in prison, as well as causing grievous bodily harm. According to investigators, the firecracker caused “a violent, deafening explosion and a bright flash.” “The firecracker that was thrown was a pyrotechnic object for which an explosives permit is required in Germany and whose explosive effect significantly exceeds fireworks approved in Germany,” said the public prosecutor’s office. Three other defendants are to answer for aiding and abetting in the trial. They are said to have supported the main defendant, among other things, by waving a fan flag in order to make it easier to commit the crime.
Hoffenheim had announced that the perpetrators would be banned from their own stadium for life. “There is no room for such people in the Hoffenheim curve. Never again,” said TSG managing director Alexander Rosen. A few weeks ago, the club received a mild fine of 20,000 euros from the German Football Association for throwing the firecrackers. The DFB sports court praised Hoffenheim’s “exemplary behavior” in dealing with the incident.