Cologne (dpa / lnw) - A jeweler is overwhelmed in Cologne, locked in the trunk of his car and then driven through the city by perpetrators for hours - while their accomplices steal jewelry from the victim's shop: The process took place in front of the Cologne district court on Friday started against five out of seven alleged perpetrators. The public prosecutor accuses the two women and three men between the ages of 28 and 59 of particularly serious robbery, deprivation of liberty and dangerous bodily harm.
According to the indictment, two attackers are said to have ambushed the then 80-year-old jeweler in an underground car park in the city center in March 2022. "They hit him several times in the face with the intention of hurting him, kicked him in the back until he fell to the ground and covered his mouth," the prosecutor said. Then they are said to have put the senior tied up in the trunk of his vehicle and drove through the city for five hours.
Meanwhile, the accused are said to have entered the victim's shop as alleged accomplices with the victim's keys. They are said to have stolen jewelry and watches worth 300,000 euros and 7,000 euros in cash. Later, the two men from the underground car park are said to have parked the car with the 80-year-old in the trunk in Cologne-Vingst. The victim, suffering from heart disease, was found there with various injuries and severely hypothermic.
On the first day of the hearing, one of the accused denied involvement in the crime. The other four defendants initially declined to comment on the allegations.
According to the court, the proceedings against the two alleged attackers from the underground car park have been separated. The process is scheduled for another eight days of negotiations until the end of April.
