Processes
Five police officers in court for assault while on duty
The defendants and their lawyers are waiting for the trial to begin. photo
© Federico Gambarini/dpa
During a police operation, they are said to have brought a then 59-year-old man to the ground with a handle, kicked him and hit him. Five police officers in Cologne are now on trial.
On the sidelines of a police operation, the 59-year-old had a verbal argument with two of the accused officers, according to the public prosecutor. But “instead of de-escalating or leaving,” the officers surrounded the man. They are then said to have attacked him with “a lever grip on the head”, brought him to the ground and tied him up. The man was also kicked and hit his head against a pillar.
Two months later the man dies
The 59-year-old is said to have suffered broken ribs and a laceration to his head during the operation. He died two months later. However, the public prosecutor’s office obviously does not see a causal connection between the injuries sustained and the man’s death, otherwise bodily harm in office resulting in death would be charged.
The indictment also accuses two officers of having written a false report following the incident, including for resisting law enforcement officers, insults and threats. A defendant is also said to have passed on information from the police computer to third parties without authorization in four cases. The defendants are German citizens. The trial is scheduled to take ten days until the end of November.