Former Reemtsma kidnapper Drach may soon be on trial for attempted murder. A corresponding charge has now been brought by the Cologne public prosecutor’s office.
Cologne – Former Reemtsma kidnapper Thomas Drach has been charged with three attacks on money transporters, including attempted murder. The 60-year-old is silent on the allegations, said the Cologne Regional Court.
A 52-year-old Dutchman who is said to have helped him is also accused. In May Drach was extradited from the Netherlands to Germany after being arrested in an Amsterdam apartment in February.
In 1996 Drach and accomplices kidnapped the Hamburg heir to the tobacco dynasty, Jan Philipp Reemtsma. For this he was sentenced to fourteen and a half years in prison. The public prosecutor’s office in Cologne has applied for him to be placed in preventive detention.
Drach, who was born in Erftstadt near Cologne, is said to have committed three attacks on money transports in Cologne and Frankfurt / Main in 2018 and 2019. The allegation of attempted murder relates to the attack in Frankfurt.
Shot at the money messenger
Drach is said to have snatched the money box from the messenger and then ran away. In this situation, the messenger fired a shot at the fleeing dragon. Thereupon he shot the messenger with a revolver while he was running and approved his death.
The messenger was reportedly hit by the bullet in the left leg, which tore his femoral vein. He lost one and a half to two liters of blood, had to undergo emergency surgery and intensive medical treatment. In addition to physical impairments, he also suffered considerably psychologically from the consequences of the incident.
The public prosecutor sees greed and the intention to hide as characteristics of murder. In the attack at Cologne / Bonn Airport, Drach reportedly shot an employee of a security company with an assault rifle. He suffered a bullet in the right thigh with a subsequent bullet in the left thigh. He also had to undergo emergency surgery and intensive medical care.
In addition to attempted murder, Drach are charged with: particularly serious robbery in three cases, dangerous bodily harm in two cases, violation of the War Weapons Control Act in two cases, violation of the Weapons Act, forgery of documents and arson in three cases. Drach is said to have stolen a total of 141,831 euros.
Drach’s defense attorney stated on dpa request: “The evidence is extremely poor and most of the allegations are speculative.”
A Dutchman is also accused
The co-accused Dutchman is charged with having committed the second attack in Cologne jointly with Drach and having helped him with the crime in Frankfurt. In all three cases, the perpetrators are said to have set fire to the first escape vehicle.
The Cologne Regional Court is now examining whether there is sufficient suspicion against Drach and his alleged accomplices. If so, the main proceedings will be opened. Experience has shown that this will take several weeks, the regional court announced. dpa
