The verdict will be given on Thursday in the mammoth trial of the Volkmarsen rampage. Chronology of an act that traumatized an entire place.
Volkmarsen / Kassel – The senseless rampage on Rose Monday 2020 shook the city of Volkmarsen * and its citizens badly. Since May 3, 2021, the Kassel district court has been processing all aspects of the offense on 24 days of taking evidence *, so that the verdict is eagerly awaited after the pleadings by the public prosecutor and the defense on Thursday (December 16, 2021) on the 27th day of the trial.
The verdict of the sixth major criminal chamber, which met as a jury court in 89 cases because of the seriousness of the murder attempt allegation, is based on the result of the evidence. The prosecutor made it clear in his plea: “That was an attempted murder on partying children” and calls for life imprisonment for the defendant Maurice P.
Trial of Volkmarsen running amok: According to witnesses, Maurice P. prepared for the act
Witness testimony supports how the perpetrator prepared for his act on the morning of Rose Monday, February 24, 2020, parking his silver-colored, almost 200 hp Mercedes station wagon at around 10 a.m. in the parking bay in front of the railway barrier on Lütersheimer Strasse, mounted his camera on the dashboard and first redeemed a deposit in the Rewe store.
Then he went home and did not return to his car until around 2 p.m. Then he got into his car and waited again.
Running amok in Volkmarsen: Maurice P. races into the crowd at speeds of up to 60 kilometers per hour
When the railroad gates lifted at 2:41 p.m., the then 29-year-old man switched on his dashcam, accelerated and headed for the Steinweg / Arolser Straße intersection. The defendant drove around the vans set up here by the police and the public order office as a vehicle block, as if on a slalom drive. He also steered around the lane divider and steered his car into the parade participants * at an estimated 50 to 60 kilometers per hour.
In doing so, he first rammed the large blue paper bin in which a member of the “Wilde 13” pageant group had set up as Oskar from Sesame Street. The lid of the paper bin flew through the air and hit the wall of the Jägerhof restaurant.
Volkmarsen rampage: Also many children among the victims
Members of the “Wilde 13” group as well as spectators were hit by cars on the roadside or injured by objects flying around. Several people flew over the bonnet, others were hit by the fenders or the exterior mirrors, and still others were thrown to the ground when the spectators standing next to them were thrown to the ground.
What happened to several children when they were busy picking up candies and other throwing material from the carnivalists is particularly frightening: The children were also knocked over, hit by the car. One of the children was even run over by the Mercedes.
As if by a miracle, however, this girl was also spared from serious injuries. Possibly it was the automatic brake assistant that finally switched off the engine so that the Mercedes came to a stop with one tire on the sidewalk in front of the Rewe market.
Volkmarsen rampage: spectators react instinctively and stop Maurice P.
Bystanders reacted instinctively and raised the vehicle so that the child could be pulled out of the niche under the engine compartment and the curb and handed over to his mother. Almost at the same time, a 16-year-old spectator ripped open the passenger door and climbed into the passenger seat to remove the ignition key before the gunman could start the car again. A scuffle broke out between the two of them.
These precious seconds were enough for even more spectators from the driver’s side to open the doors and use their fists to prevent the killer from restarting the engine.
Volkmarsen rampage: Chaotic scenes after the vehicle stops
At this time, two police officers who observed the pageant in plain clothes had fought their way into the interior of the vehicle. They pushed the driver into his seat and grabbed his hands to handcuff him.
This scuffle resulted in incredible dialogues, as the police officers told the court at the beginning of the mammoth trial: The strong men in the audience hadn’t wanted to believe that the men with the handcuffs were actually plainclothes police officers.
A helper said that he would only let go of the perpetrator when uniformed police were on site. After all, it is carnival and anyone can claim to be a police officer. An angry spectator even asked the civil servant: “Give me your service weapon, I’ll do this.”
Fortunately, there was no such excess of self-defense, also because uniformed police officers who had previously regulated the traffic at the intersection were on site very quickly and shoved the alleged perpetrator into a police car that had rushed to the scene of the crime.
Volkmarsen rampage: First responders respond in an exemplary manner
Almost at the same time, an unprecedented cascade of rescue operations started. Dozens of ambulances and emergency doctors were ordered to Volkmarsen from all over North Hesse and the neighboring Westphalia. Until they arrived, however, the Volkmarser reacted as exemplary as any disaster control planner imagines: After a moment of silence, dozens of first aiders were on the spot.
The many Volkmars firefighters, who took part in the pageant themselves or who had secured the pageant route, plunged into the chaos and tackled wherever help was needed. One mother described how she had only just wiped the blood from the face of her son, who was lying on the ground, when he jumped up again, put on his firefighter uniform and helped others.
The Burg-Apotheke team reacted immediately and instinctively correctly: The pharmacy was opened and turned into a makeshift hospital. Bandages and blankets were taken from the camp and distributed on the street. Ambulance crews spread the injured over a wide area throughout the afternoon. The clinics in Kassel and Korbach were also occupied, as were those in Arolsen, Warburg, Paderborn and Bielefeld.
Volkmarsen rampage: many victims severely traumatized
Most of the visible wounds have now healed. Many of the injured, however, still carry around emotional injuries, as the interviews in court showed. Many of the victims are still frightened when they hear engines roaring behind them, many cannot sleep as usual, and 22 months after the crime they still have these terrible images in their heads.
The consequences of the rampage in Volkmarsen are enormous and are still omnipresent in the city, as Mayor Hartmut Linnekugel and Protestant pastor Britta Holk testified in court. The carnival club and with it all the people of the people who care about the carnival hope that the city can find its way back to carefree happiness as soon as possible.
In the meantime, five cities and municipalities in the vicinity of Volkmarsen have purchased high-performance truck locks to secure future pageants for around 400,000 euros and with grants from the State of Hesse. “After this deed, the future pageants in our city will look different,” said Mayor Linnekugel in court. (Elmar Schulten) * hna.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA.
The defendant Maurice P. remained silent about his act during the entire trial – the answer to why remains. What is it like to represent someone like Maurice P. in court? In the podcast, defense attorney Bernd Pfläging speaks about his job *.
List of rubric lists: © Uwe Zucchi / dpa / archive picture
