The victim: Entrepreneur Michael R. (55) Photo: Private
From BZ/dpa
After the violent death of a Hertha fan, a man from Rostock was sentenced to three and a half years.
The Berlin district court found the 25-year-old Brandon H. guilty of bodily harm resulting in death on Tuesday. In addition, he should pay 10,000 euros to the bereaved.
The defendant admitted in court that the 55-year-old had hit the 55-year-old in the face with his fist in May last year after the soccer relegation match between Hertha BSC and Hamburger SV in the Berlin Olympic Stadium. However, he had previously been provoked and attacked, explained the 25-year-old.
The prosecutor had asked for four years in prison. The accused wanted to teach the 55-year-old a lesson after a short verbal argument, he said in his plea. He “constantly followed up when the matter seemed already resolved”. From the point of view of the public prosecutor’s office, it was a targeted hit.
The victim gave no reason for this. According to an expert report, the 25-year-old was less guilty at the time of the crime because of his alcohol and cocaine consumption. The defense attorney had pleaded for acquittal. It is a “classic case of self-defense”.
According to investigations, the Berlin family man fell to the ground unabated and hit the back of his head on the asphalt. He suffered a severe traumatic brain injury and died a few days later in a hospital. The German defendant initially escaped undetected.
At the time, the police were looking for a suspect with an identikit. The Rostocker was finally arrested on August 3, 2022. At the end of September he was spared further detention and has been free ever since.