Iraqi sentenced to life for rape, murder of teenage girl in Germany
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The 22-year-old Iraqi was found guilty of raping and murdering the schoolgirl in a forest near the Wiesbaden district of Erbenheim.
PHOTO: DPA
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WIESBADEN, GERMANY (DPA) - A German court has sentenced a 22-year-old man from Iraq to life in prison for the rape and murder of a 14-year-old schoolgirl, Susanna, from the western city of Mainz.
In handing down their judgment on Wednesday (July 10), the judges in the Wiesbaden district court also stated the particular severity of guilt in the case, making early release after 15 years almost impossible for the man, named only as Ali B under German privacy laws.
The district court found Ali B guilty of raping and murdering Susanna more than a year ago in a forest near the Wiesbaden district of Erbenheim.
The body of the girl was found on June 6, 2018, in a hole in the ground near railroad tracks about two weeks after her disappearance, based on a tip-off to police.
Shortly after Susanna's death, Ali B and his family returned to Iraq, but he was caught a few days later in Kurdish-controlled northern Iraq and returned to Germany by federal police.
The prosecution accused the Iraqi refugee of strangling Susanna to cover up the rape. He acted in a cold-blooded, purposeful and malicious manner, they said.
Ali B admitted to killing the 14-year-old girl at the start of the trial, but he denied the rape.
The defendant apologised to Susanna's mother in his closing address to the court.
Ali B faces trial in another case for the rape of an 11-year-old girl. That trial will not be held in public.
