The German Prosecutor's Office confirmed this Tuesday that two girls, aged twelve and thirteen, are the main accused of having killed another minor, of the same age. They themselves confessed to the crime after being questioned, as confirmed by the German police. The victim's body was found lifeless last Sunday, after her parents reported her disappearance the day before.
"At this time, we have to start from the basis that the crime was committed by two minors from the victim's entourage," Koblenz chief prosecutor Mario Mannweiler said at a press conference, calling the case "exceptional." .
Luise, the victim, disappeared on Saturday when she was returning home in the town of Freudenberg, in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia (West) after visiting a friend, and her lifeless body was discovered on Sunday afternoon. in a wooded area. When the suspicions were revealed, the brutality of the crime and the age of both the aggressors and the victim have impacted the German media, where the news has covered all the front pages.
The autopsy determined that "the girl died as a result of the numerous stab wounds and the consequent great loss of blood," the prosecutor said. On Monday, the Koblenz Prosecutor's Office and police had confirmed that "there were no indications of a sexual offence."
The girls were allegedly questioned several times and finally admitted to the crime on Monday, according to Jürgen Süs, head of the criminal investigation police.
The prosecutor refused to provide data on the motive, the behavior of the girls before and after allegedly committing the crime, or their whereabouts, as they were minors.
The police continued to look for new clues on Tuesday in the place where the girl's body was found, in the territory of the neighboring federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate, and especially the knife or knives used in the stabbing.
Meanwhile, the head of the Government of North Rhine-Westaflia, Hendrik Wüst, today conveyed his condolences to the families and relatives of the minor in a brief appearance before the press.
He noted that the entire federal state is in mourning, adding that it is "unimaginable and barely bearable that children are capable of such an act." Hendrik Wüst assured that the authorities are doing everything in their power to clarify how "this terrible crime" could have happened.
He added that for years there has been a "worrying increase" in criminal acts, also committed by children under 14 years of age, of which this crime "is a disturbing culminating point."
