Since two young police officers were shot dead, the authorities have received numerous letters of condolence. The Minister of Justice emphasized that the investigations are still at an early stage.
Kusel – Hundreds of letters of condolence, for example from children or even from a prison, have been received by the authorities in Rhineland-Palatinate as a sign of deep sadness after the police murders in Kusel.
“Messages full of sympathy and sympathy are reaching us from Germany and around the world,” said a spokesman for the West Palatinate police headquarters on Friday.
Meanwhile, the investigators continue to assume that the two arrested suspects acted together. In view of the “dynamics of what happened”, the shots at the two officers could not have been fired by just one person, said Rhineland-Palatinate Minister of Justice Herbert Mertin.
A police candidate and a police commissioner were shot dead during a vehicle check near Kusel on Monday last week. On the same day, two suspects were arrested in neighboring Saarland. The investigators assume that the two men wanted to cover up poaching with the act.
One of the suspects testified
For example, the injury picture and the chronological sequence speak for two participants, said Mertin in the legal committee of the state parliament. “There is currently no evidence that there could be other parties involved.” According to investigations, the 38-year-old suspect shot a shotgun in the direction of the candidate’s head and fatally injured her. “Then the two suspects are said to have opened fire on the officers together, using a shotgun and a single-shot rifle. The officer was fatally injured by a total of four shots.”
The 32-year-old suspect admitted to having poached with the other accused on the night of the crime, said the FDP politician. The man also stated that he was also at the scene of the crime, but did not shoot. The 38-year-old makes use of his right to remain silent. The investigation is at an early stage. “Hopefully, the investigation will be able to answer the question of why,” emphasized Mertin. “The crime must be cleared up quickly – we owe it to the two dead.”
Police feel a wave of solidarity
In response to the deadly shots, the authorities in Rhineland-Palatinate experienced a wave of solidarity. “More than 1,000 letters have already been received by the police in Kusel, not far from the crime scene,” said the police spokesman. “Our office has also received far more than 1000 e-mails.” It is true that one hears again and again that there is increasing disrespect towards security forces. “But in these difficult times we feel the support that the police have in society. That feels good.”
The two victims will be buried in Saarland next week. The Rhineland-Palatinate Interior Minister Roger Lewentz (SPD) is expected to attend the non-public funeral service for the 29-year-old police commissioner on Tuesday in Freisen, it said. The service is broadcast to the forecourt of a hall. The 24-year-old police candidate will also be buried in private on Wednesday in Homburg-Erbach. The Rhineland-Palatinate government is preparing an official act of mourning with the police.
Investigations in another state
After the Kusel murders, the Saarbrücken public prosecutor’s office also initiated proceedings against the 38-year-old on suspicion of poaching. There are “very extensive investigations,” the prosecutor said. There have been a total of 24 criminal investigations against the man in Saarland since 2004. The “Spiegel” had previously reported about it.
A 37-year-old man from the Saarland has meanwhile been arrested because of his solidarity with the suspected police killers. On January 31, the day of the crime, he wrote on Facebook: “Those were two of many. Everyone gets a turn,” said the public prosecutor’s office in Saarbrücken. When the arrest warrant was issued on Friday, the district court assumed that the accused would evade criminal proceedings. dpa
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