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Two burned-out cars at the scene of the accident near Bad Langensalza
Photo: Silvio Dietzel/dpa
In April 2023 he caused a car accident that cost the lives of seven people - now the 35-year-old driver has been sentenced to four years in prison.
He was guilty of seven counts of negligent homicide and two counts of bodily harm. In addition, he drove without a driver's license and endangered road traffic, according to the verdict at the Mühlhausen district court. At the time of the crime, the man had a blood alcohol level of at least 1.3 per mille. This meant that the court imposed the highest possible sentence in the matter. The now convicted person is also not allowed to get a new driving license for five years.
The jury found it proven that the 35-year-old was drunk and driving too fast on a bypass near Bad Langensalza at the beginning of April last year. The man's car collided with a car in which five 19-year-olds were sitting in oncoming traffic. A car behind it collided with this car. These two vehicles burst into flames after the collisions.
All 19 year olds died. The 60-year-old driver of the following car also died, and his then 73-year-old passenger was able to escape from the burning car with serious injuries. A 44-year-old passenger in the defendant's car was also killed and his passenger was seriously injured. The defendant himself was also in danger of losing his life for some time.
»No punishment, no matter how high it is, whether it is accepted or not, brings the children back, does not bring anyone back. And that’s the really sad thing,” said presiding judge Rüdiger Richel after the verdict was announced.
The defendant had already fully admitted the allegations against him at the start of the trial. However, he had his defense attorney explain that he could no longer remember the day of the crime, but that he recognized his guilt after reviewing the documents. The verdict is not yet legally binding.
kha/dpa/AFP