Verdict in Germany

Murder by gunshot to the head: prison sentence for 15-year-old

Symbolic image(Bild: Bjoern Wylezich)

A then 14-year-old killed a fellow pupil of the same age with a targeted shot to the head in Bavaria last year. The shooter has now been sentenced to eight years and six months in prison for murder.

With this verdict, the large juvenile court followed the opinion of the public prosecutor's office and the joint plaintiff. They had considered the murder criterion of malice aforethought to be fulfilled, as the shot to the head came from behind. The defendant's lawyer, on the other hand, had pleaded manslaughter.

Last September, the now 15-year-old German had killed a 14-year-old Italian boy with a single shot from a pistol on the grounds of a school in Lohr am Main, northwest of Würzburg. He confessed to the fatal shot at the beginning of the trial. However, he testified that the shot was not intentional.

Murder weapon stolen from step-grandfather
According to investigators, there had previously been an argument between the two pupils over money. The murder weapon, a Ceska CZ 75, had belonged to the shooter's now deceased step-grandfather. He apparently took the shooter's weapon without being asked.