process
Throwing hand grenades: “He knows he did wrong”
The trial takes place in the strictly secured hall of the Higher Regional Court in Stuttgart-Stammheim. photo
© Bernd Weißbrod/dpa
It is the sad climax of a bloody conflict between two groups in the Stuttgart area: a 23-year-old threw a hand grenade at a community of mourners in June and is now on trial for it.
It could have ended in a bloodbath, which the public prosecutor’s office believes happened at the beginning of June in the cemetery of the 6,000-person community of Altbach What happened in Stuttgart: A 23-year-old hurled a hand grenade towards a community of mourners. At this point, around 50 people are standing in front of the funeral hall, where they have just said goodbye to a young man.
The fact that there are not many deaths on this day in early summer is only thanks to a happy coincidence. The grenade ricochets off a branch, lands 30 meters away from the group and explodes there. Nevertheless, at least 15 people are injured, some seriously.
Since Thursday, the suspected grenade thrower has had to answer before the Stuttgart regional court. A verdict is not expected before mid-March. The public prosecutor’s office accuses him of attempted murder, the public prosecutor speaks of an insidious and dangerous attack on the mourning community: “He consciously took advantage of the fact that the mourners were thinking about the deceased.”
Steel balls are thrown through the air
He then lists in detail what the many steel balls, up to three millimeters in size, that the explosion throws through the air, do to the cemetery: They penetrate the arms, shoulders and thighs of the mourners, and one of the balls tears a piece of the victim’s body one’s ear, the splinters hit another in the throat. Another bullet lodges near a victim’s lung. Several mourners have to undergo surgery, and some still suffer from panic attacks and stress disorders to this day.
The defendant did not comment personally on the crime at the start of the trial, but had his defense attorney make a statement. The accusation is correct, says his lawyer Stefan Holoch – and then immediately apologizes from the 23-year-old: “He would like to use me to apologize to everyone who was harmed.” His client knows that he acted wrongly. “Very wrong.”
Severe traumatic brain injury
Throwing hand grenades also has massive consequences for the alleged perpetrator. When he tries to escape in a taxi after the throw, several mourners pull him out of the car and brutally beat him. According to the public prosecutor’s office, until the first emergency services arrive, they jump and step on his head and body, causing the Iranian a severe traumatic brain injury, after which he remains in the intensive care unit for several days. The alleged thugs will be in court starting next week.
In the courtroom, the young man speaks about his life, but often claims gaps in his memory. “I don’t remember a lot of it,” he says. He suffers from headaches and sleep disorders – whether these are a result of the traumatic brain injury remains unclear. He tells the court about further injuries to his head, a few years ago he fell eight meters into the depths, and the young man also speaks of a tumor.
Asylum application was rejected
In 2006 he fled from Iran to Germany with his family. His father was politically persecuted there and fled the death penalty. In Germany, the now 23-year-old attended German courses, completed secondary school and began various training courses. His application for asylum was rejected and at the time of the alleged crime he was only tolerated.
According to investigators, the background to the crime is a feud that has been raging between two rival groups in the Stuttgart area for many months. The prosecutor says the defendant belongs to a Kurdish group from the Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen and Göppingen area. “He suspected there would be numerous relatives or sympathizers of the enemy group at the funeral.” According to the investigators, this is primarily active around Esslingen.
Shot at people
The groups have been fighting each other for months, and acts of violence continue to occur in the greater Stuttgart area. People were repeatedly shot at. There were incidents in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen, in Plochingen, in Asperg in the Ludwigsburg district and in Eislingen in the Göppingen district, among others. According to the State Criminal Police Office, there have been more than 40 arrests so far.
For security reasons, the trial will take place in the strictly secured hall of the Higher Regional Court in Stuttgart-Stammheim. On Thursday, dozens of emergency vehicles will be parked in front of the court building, and visitors will be carefully checked at the entrance. It remains quiet: members of the enemy groups do not show themselves.