Murder of Maria Ladenburger

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Murder of Maria Ladenburger
BornMaria Ladenburger
(1996-12-06)6 December 1996
Died16 October 2016(2016-10-16) (aged 19)
Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Cause of deathdrowning
Burial27 October 2016
Brussels, Belgium
ArrestedHussein Khavari

Maria Ladenburger (6 December 1996 – 16 October 2016), a 19-year-old female student from Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, was found raped and drowned on 16 October 2016 on the banks of the river Dreisam.

On 3 December 2016, Freiburg police announced the arrest of an asylum seeker from Afghanistan as a suspect. The State Criminal Office said that DNA analysis had positively identified the suspect.[1]

Background

There had been problems with underage unaccompanied refugees in Freiburg for some time; several crime cases were recorded, predominantly around the square of Stühlinger Kirchplatz, including some cases of sexual assaults, but mostly drug dealing and bodily injury.[2]

Victim

Ladenburger was a 19-year-old female student who was initially named as Maria L. by the police, in accordance with German privacy law. She was the daughter of an EU official,[2] Clemens Ladenburger, a member of the Legal Service of the European Commission.[3][4] Ladenburger was buried in Brussels on 27 October 2016. Ten days after her death, the Ladenburger family published her name in an obituary in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung on 26 October 2016,[5] in which it pleaded for donations among others for an association, in which Maria was a member, Weitblick, which is also active in refugee relief.[6] Originally raised in the Enzkreis in Baden-Württemberg, Ladenburger came to Freiburg to attend the university. She was, as many Freiburg students, socially active, namely in the Weitblick association, in a project for a school in Ghana. Other sources link her also to activities in refugee relief[7] but this was denied by the Weitblick association.[8]

Crime

On the night of 15–16 October 2016, Ladenburger had attended a party hosted by the faculty of medicine. She left the party at 2:37 a.m. and was on her way home by bike. She was raped near the Schwarzwald-Stadion and died of drowning in the river Dreisam shortly after 3:00 a.m. There were no witnesses to the crime. A female jogger found the body on the same day.[1][9] One week after the suspect's arrest, police told that another biker came along the crime scene at approximately 3:00 and saw a white ladies' bicycle lying around on the right hand side of the cycle track, which must have been the white bicycle of Maria. He did not make any other relevant observations. Also another female cyclist, yet unknown to the police, must have passed the crime scene at the soccer stadium only minutes before. Police keep on searching for this possible eye witness.[10]

Investigation

Freiburg police formed a special commission consisting of 68 officers. Police questioned more than 1,400 people and checked more than 1,600 clues.[11] The DNA of the perpetrator was found on a purple ladies' bicycle of unknown origin, which was discovered 500 meters from the scene and which was obviously used by him; it is still unclear, when it was used.[1][9]

Police also worked with a sniffer dog during the investigation. He led the officers into an university auditorium for biochemistry.[9]

A strand of hair 18.5 cm.-long was found at the murder scene which displayed a conspicuous hairstyle – a bleached undercut – identified the perpetrator, a 17-year-old asylum seeker whose original hair colour was black. A policewoman recognized him on a CCTV recording from a streetcar which was taped in the vicinity on early 17 October, though he had partially changed his hairstyle. A black scarf was also found at the scene with traces of his DNA on it. The arrest was announced on early 3 December. Freiburg police held a press conference on the same day.[1][9]

The case was the subject of the ZDF TV programme Aktenzeichen XY … ungelöst.[1]

Police are still checking if the victim and the perpetrator knew each other, and if the authorities made mistakes supervising the perpetrator and the foster family.[12]

Suspect

The suspect, identified as Hussein Khavari, is an allegedly Hazara[13][14] from Ghazni, Afghanistan, who immigrated into Germany in 2015. He sought asylum as an underage unaccompanied refugee [11] and lived with a foster family[15] in Freiburg, who were also questioned after his arrest.[1] The suspect will be charged as a juvenile and, if convicted, will receive a sentence of no more than ten years and deportation.[12]

According to investigations by Stern magazine, which were confirmed by the suspect's Greek lawyer, in 2014 Khavari was sentenced to 10 years in prison for robbing a 20-year-old student in Corfu and throwing her over a cliff in 2013. The victim survived with heavy injuries. Khavari was released after 1.5 years and moved to Germany, where the authorities were ignorant of his earlier conviction.[16][17] Fingerprints have confirmed that the suspect in the Freiburg case is identical with the convicted criminal of Korfu.[18]

Journalists discovered[19] that when the suspect applied to asylum in Greece in 2013 as an unaccompanied minor, he was reported to be 16 or 17, and to come from Iran. German police have no substantiated information,[20] but have initiated contact with Greek police.[21]

Possible link to case of Carolin G.

The suspect was also seen as a possible suspect for the rape and murder of 27-year-old female jogger Carolin G., which occurred three weeks later near Endingen, Baden-Württemberg, 30 kilometres (19 mi) outside of Freiburg. According to the police, no DNA or other forensic evidence was found at the crime scene.[9] An edition of the TV programme Aktenzeichen XY … ungelöst dealt with both cases. More than 400 people called in to give clues to the police.[9] They were linked by the press as "Frauenmorde von Freiburg" (women murders of Freiburg), and were called "strikingly similar" by some,[22] but the police declared there was probably no link between the two crimes.[23] The murders aroused anxiety among residents of Freiburg.[22]

Reactions

On 3 October, Martin Jäger, Secretary of State in the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Interior, sent 25 additional police forces to Freiburg to increase police presence. Politicians had also demanded improved forensic equipment for the Freiburg police for some time. Guido Wolf, Minister of Justice of Baden-Württemberg, called for a change in the code of criminal procedure to allow the police to determine the colour of hair, eyes and skin from a DNA sample.[2] Wolf's desire to change the law triggered a critical response by a group of scholars in an Offener Brief. The scholars argued that the use of forensic DNA phenotyping technology although not being really precise enough may have adverse consequences for the individual, the society and the state of law, and that the ethical, legal and social implications should be discussed before using it.

The mayor of Freiburg, Dieter Salomon (Green Party), stated that the origin of the perpetrator should not be used for sweeping judgements.[12] Sigmar Gabriel (SPD chairman) expressed his condolences, and also warned of incitement to hatred and said that "refugees can commit the same horrifying crimes as people born in Germany". CDU vice-chairwoman Julia Klöckner stated that "such cruelties are committed by natives and foreigners, this is no new phenomenon. It's not understandable how a human being can be able to do this." Rainer Wendt, head of Deutsche Polizeigewerkschaft (German Police Union) said, "This and many more victims would not be, if our country would have been prepared for the dangers that are connected to mass immigration."[24] Wendt subsequently faced criticism from competitive Gewerkschaft der Polizei chief Oliver Malchow. In addition, AfD chief Jörg Meuthen said, "We are shocked about this crime, and realize at the same time, that our warnings of the uncontrolled immigration of hundreds of thousands of young men from patriarchal Islamic cultures were depreciated as populism."[25]

ARD newsmagazine Tagesschau did not report the case in its main edition on 3 December, claiming it was of only "regional significance" and that "the special protection for juveniles" would apply in this case. However, the arrest had already been reported internationally by The New York Times and The Washington Post.[26][27] In Germany, public broadcaster ZDF had carried the story. Tagesschau's stated reasons for not reporting on the story were subjected to criticism. Stern magazine wrote that the ARD journalists had given an "absurd" explanation for their "ignorance".[28][29] Two days later, ARD magazine Tagesthemen started to report about the case after public pressure.[30] When chancellor Angela Merkel was questioned about the case during the programme, she stated: "If the fact should prove true that an Afghan refugee is responsible, then we should absolutely condemn this, exactly as in the case of any other murderer, and we should clearly name this." ARD announced their intent to engage a "quality manager" henceforth to deal with the growing public criticism of their decisions.[31] As Germany reacted with shock at the crime, the next day Merkel called for the burqa to be banned in Germany "wherever legally possible".[32] In addition to citing the Ladenburger rape in the case of the burka ban, others also cited the Cologne New Year's Eve sex attacks and the Munich shooting were mentioned as causes for "anger" in Germany.[33]

On 15 December 2016, the German Minister for the Interior, Thomas de Maiziere blamed Greece for not releasing an arrest warrant in the case. "That is a very annoying case file. We will have to discuss that with the Greek side", he stated. Several German politicians, among them Boris Palmer (The Greens) and Thomas Strobl (CDU), Minister of the Interior of Baden-Württemberg, demanded a better check of the age of unaccompanied minors in reaction to reports that the perpetrator was probably not underage.[34] Strobl demanded an examination of the bone age (x-ray of the wrist) to clarify the age of alleged minors. Many underage refugees had no papers and statements about their age were often doubtful. Strobl also demanded common European criminal records.[35]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f "Tote Studentin – Verdächtiger ist 17-jähriger Flüchtling" [Dead student-suspect is refugee]. Die Welt (in German). 3 December 2016. Retrieved 3 December 2016.
  2. ^ a b c "Ein gefärbtes Haar führte zur heißen Spur" [A dyed hair led to the hot trail]. Frankfurter Allgemeine (in German). 3 December 2016. Retrieved 3 December 2016.
  3. ^ Afghan asylum seeker arrested over murder of German medical student who was daughter of senior EU official, Telegraph.co.uk, 4 December 2016
  4. ^ Afghan refugee arrested over rape-murder of German medical student Maria Ladenburger, Ibitimes.co.uk, 4 December 2016
  5. ^ "Traueranzeige Maria Ladenburger" [Mourning notice Maria Ladenburger]. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (in German). 26 October 2016. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  6. ^ "Marias Familie bat um Spenden – auch für Flüchtlinge" [Maria's family asked for donations - for refugees, yet]. Bild.de (in German). 4 December 2016. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  7. ^ "Was wir wissen und was nicht" [What we know and what not]. n-tv.de (in German). 5 December 2016. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  8. ^ Stellungnahme von Weitblick e.V. zu den Reaktionen und der aktuellen Berichterstattung zum Mord an Maria L., weitblicker.org, 7 December 2016
  9. ^ a b c d e f "Polizei: 17-Jähriger soll Maria L. ermordet haben - ein Haar war wichtige Spur" [Police: 17-year-old Maria L. was murdered - a hair was important trace]. Badische Zeitung (in German). 3 December 2016. Retrieved 3 December 2016.
  10. ^ "POL-FR: 15. Folgemeldung zu: Leblose Frau aufgefunden - Neue Hinweise auf mögliche Zeuginnen" [POL-FR: 15th follow-up message for: Lifeless woman found - New evidence for possible eye-witnesses]. Pressportal (in German). 9 December 2016. Retrieved 9 December 2016.
  11. ^ a b "Tatverdächtiger ist erst 17" [The suspect is only 17]. Der Spiegel (in German). 3 December 2016. Retrieved 3 December 2016.
  12. ^ a b c "Polizei überprüft Pflegefamilie und Behörden" [Police investigate host family and authorities]. n-tv.de (in German). 4 December 2016. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  13. ^ Iraqi asylum seeker is arrested for sexually assaulting students in Germany just days after Afghan migrant was accused of raping and drowning EU official's daughter
  14. ^ "Was man über den 17-jährigen Tatverdächtigen im Mordfall Maria L. weiß" [What we know about the 17-year-old suspect in the murder-case Maria L.]. Badische Zeitung (in German). 6 December 2016. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  15. ^ James Rothwell (4 December 2016). "Afghan asylum seeker arrested over murder of German medical student who was daughter of senior EU official". The Telegraph. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  16. ^ Beging Verdächtiger weiteres Verbrechen?, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, December 13, 2016
  17. ^ Rüdigr Soldt: Freiburger Verdächtiger beging Gewaltverbrechen in Griechenland, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, December 14, 2016
  18. ^ Fingerabdrücke sind identisch, Spiegel online, December 14 2016
  19. ^ http://www.stern.de/panorama/stern-crime/stern-exklusiv--mutmasslicher-moerder-von-maria-l--aus-freiburg-soll-vorbestrafter-gewalttaeter-sein-7238230.html
  20. ^ "Freiburg murder case leads to Greece". Süddeutsche Zeitung. Retrieved 15 December 2016. Derzeit habe die deutsche Polizei keine gesicherten Informationen zu dem Fall in Griechenland, sagte eine BKA-Sprecherin.
  21. ^ "Killer of Maria L. committed crimes in Greece". Focus (in German). Retrieved 14 December 2016.
  22. ^ a b Frauenmorde: Freiburg zwischen Angst und schlimmen Erinnerungen, Stern.de, 17 November 2016, in German
  23. ^ http://www.faz.net/aktuell/gesellschaft/kriminalitaet/getoetete-studentin-in-freiburg-mann-gefasst-14556754.html
  24. ^ "So reagiert die Politik auf den Mordfall Maria" [Thus, politics reacts to Maria's murder]. Bild.de (in German). 4 December 2016. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  25. ^ ""Wendt verhöhnt das Opfer"" ['Wendt mocked the victim']. Die Welt (in German). 6 December 2016. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  26. ^ "Afghan Teenager Detained in Rape, Slaying of German Student". The New York Times. Associated Press. 3 December 2016. Retrieved 3 December 2016.
  27. ^ "Afghan teenager detained in rape, slaying of German student". The Washington Post. Associated Press. 3 December 2016. Retrieved 3 December 2016.
  28. ^ "Darum ließ die "Tagesschau" die Freiburg-Meldung weg" [Therefore, the "Tagesschau" left the Freiburg message]. Die Welt (in German). 4 December 2016. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  29. ^ "'Tagesschau' ignoriert Festnahme in Freiburg - das ist die absurde Begründung" ['Tagesschau' ignores arrest in Freiburg - this is the absurd reason]. Der Stern (in German). 4 October 2016. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  30. ^ ""Tagesthemen" berichten über Mordverdacht gegen Flüchtling" ["Tagesthemen" report on murder suspicions against refugees]. Die Welt (in German). 5 December 2016. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  31. ^ "Merkel fordert, "Mörder ganz deutlich zu benennen"" [Merkel calls for 'clearly naming murderers']. Die Welt (in German). 6 October 2016. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  32. ^ MELISSA EDDY. "Refugee's Arrest Turns a Crime Into National News (and Debate) in Germany". The New York Times. Retrieved 9 December 2016. Ms. Merkel's measured comments, made just a day before she called for banning full-face veils "wherever legally possible,"
  33. ^ NEAL BAKER. "LIFTING THE VEIL What are the European laws on the burka and what is the difference between a burka and a niqab?". Retrieved 13 December 2016. Incidents like the Cologne sex attack scandal, the Munich shootings and the alleged rape and murder of 19-year-old student Maria Ladenburger by an Afghan teen has fuelled anger in the country.
  34. ^ De Maizière greift griechische Behörden an, n-tv.de, 15 December 2016, in German
  35. ^ Strobl fordert Handwurzeluntersuchung, n-tv.de, 16 December 2016, in German
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