Swiss camper killed: 13 years in prison for defendant
Published: Thursday, Jan 25th 2024, 18:40
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A 39-year-old man has been sentenced to 13 years in prison for killing a Swiss camper with a log on the banks of the Rhine in Jestetten in the far south of Baden-Württemberg. As the Waldshut-Tiengen district court announced on Thursday, he killed his victim with at least six massive blows to the skull. It was a "disturbing act", said the presiding judge Martin Hauser.
According to the investigation, the 31-year-old Swiss man had set up a camp with a hammock on the riverbank at the beginning of June. Passers-by discovered the body after the murder.
In a statement read out by his defense lawyer during the trial, the Latvian-born defendant confessed to killing the man. However, the motive was not clear. As the court has now announced, the police investigation also proved the 39-year-old's guilt. German and Swiss investigators had worked well together in the case.
The court's verdict fell short of the prosecution's demand, which had called for a prison sentence of 14 years. The man was convicted of manslaughter - the chamber did not find any so-called murder characteristics such as greed or malice aforethought. The verdict is not yet final and can be appealed. The competent court of appeal is the Federal Court of Justice, as the court announced.
©Keystone/SDA
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