A former employee at the “Badischer Hof” in Baden-Baden is suspected of having started a fire. The damage caused is estimated at around 75 million euros.
Baden-Baden – The fire in the “Badischer Hof” in Baden-Baden with damage of around 75 million euros is said to have been started by a former employee of the luxury hotel. The 36-year-old is now abroad, the public prosecutor and the police announced on Thursday.
“By way of legal assistance, the public prosecutor’s office in Baden-Baden arranged for the accused to be questioned in his home country.” The suspected arsonist is said to have committed similar crimes abroad in the past.
The “Badische Hof” is the oldest palace hotel in Germany. Many great personalities have been guests there. After being taken over by a hotel group, the hotel was renovated and reopened in mid-July last year.
Hotel closed since fire
The major fire then caused considerable damage in a historical, listed part of the building at the beginning of September. The police and public prosecutor’s office now estimate the damage to property at around 55 million euros, of which around 50 million are to the building and 5 million to the inventory. The damage caused by the loss of operations should therefore be around an additional 20 million euros.
Around 160 guests were brought to safety in good time. The investigators have since interviewed more than 200 witnesses and evaluated traces and clues, they said. The suspicion of arson and against the ex-employee had been confirmed. “On the other side, there is currently nothing to indicate a possible technical cause that could have led to the outbreak of the fire.” The “Badischer Hof” has been closed since the fire. dpa
