Little more than 48 hours have passed since the bloody murder in the German town of Illerkirchberg, which saw a 14-year-old schoolgirl stabbed to death and her 13-year-old friend seriously injured as they walked to the school bus stop on Monday morning.
More details are now coming to light about the suspected murderer, a 27-year-old refugee from Eritrea.
According to senior prosecutor Michael Bischofberger, the suspect arrived in Germany at the peak of the migrant crisis in 2016 and had been issued a residence permit.
“Apart from a fare evasion, he has never come to the attention of the police,” Bischofberger told reporters on Tuesday. He added that investigators could not yet say anything about a possible motive, as the suspect, who will be provided with a public defender, “has not given any information so far.”
Innocence is being examined
The Eritrean reportedly has significant injuries following his arrest and remains under police guard in the hospital after an operation. His injuries are being examined by forensic scientists at the prosecutor’s request. “At first glance, his injuries appear to have been self-inflicted,” Bischofberger said.
The prosecutor’s office is currently considering whether to seek an arrest warrant or whether there is evidence of diminished or excluded culpability, which would entail placement in a psychiatric hospital if necessary. “We will apply today for arrest warrants for murder and attempted murder of the 13-year-old,” the prosecutor told the Junge Freiheit news outlet.
14-year-old raped in asylum shelter
As reported by this site, it is not the first time the small community of Illerkirchberg has made headlines for violence by asylum seekers against minors.
In 2019, a girl, also 14 years old, was raped several times over hours by four asylum seekers from Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2021, the Ulm Regional Court ruled “almost at the lowest edge” of the penalty range and imposed lenient sentences of two years and two months and two years and three months on the defendants.
The rape on Halloween in 2019, however, “has nothing to do with the current case,” emphasized prosecutor Bischofberger.
On Tuesday, there was a funeral service at the Alevi Cultural Center in Ulm for the girl killed on Monday, Südwest-Presse reported. The Turkish Consul General also attended the service. The victim, Ece S., was an Alevi with a Turkish migratory background.
