By Julian Loevenich, Thomas Fischer and Bernhard Schilz
First the theft in the Green Vault, now the coup at the Dresden district court. The process for the Remmos couldn’t have gone any better – they stole Saxony’s treasury and still haven’t returned everything!
After 47 days of negotiations, there were mild penalties and a release from detention.
The main perpetrator, Rabieh Remo (29, smashed the display case in the Green Vault), was allowed to leave the court at large. The arrest warrant for the risk of absconding remains in place, but is suspended. Means: He has to report to the police, but is allowed to go out first.
And things get even better for Remo (he is only spelled with an m): his pre-trial detention (since November 2020) is counted towards the sentence (6 years and 2 months in prison). Due to the release from detention (agreed in the unspeakable deal), he is allowed to start later – near his home in Berlin.
And other convicted Remmos also benefit from the release from prison.
The situation is similar for 27-year-old Bashir Remmo (5 years and 10 months in prison) and 24-year-old Mohamed (4 years and 4 months in prison). The latter could even switch to open prison very quickly due to youth criminal law, i.e. become a day release prisoner.
The accused in the Dresden jewel theft with their lawyers in court on Tuesday Photo: Sebastian Kahnert/Pool via REUTERS
︎ That means in plain language: After his break from prison agreed in the deal and the credit for the detention, Mohamed could have served his entire sentence as the first Remmo in two and a half years at the latest!
Ahemd Remmo (25) was even acquitted, the judge believed his alibi. Only Abdul Majed Remmo (24) has to continue to sit for the time being. He was denied a release from prison because he had gone into hiding for six months before he was arrested – risk of absconding!
He got 5 years juvenile detention (including a 2018 sentence). But it also means for him that open enforcement will soon beckon. The pre-trial detention will be taken into account, and he will also be free again in 2025 if he is well behaved.
For outsiders, the verdicts do not act as a deterrent
The chairman of the Association of Berlin Public Prosecutors, Ralph Knispel, criticized the deal before the verdict was announced: “It is a difficult task to convey this to the law-abiding population.”
“Due to the agreement in Dresden, there is a very great risk that police officers in the fight against clans will no longer see the value of their work. So far, I only got the information from the media: But if the loot is returned incomplete and damaged, this also affects the impression of the law-abiding population as to whether the rule of law is really taking action at all.”
A deal should not have just one winner. Either everyone wins or everyone loses. In principle, however, the instrument of agreement (deal) should be rated positively. The more complex a case, the more agreements can help to solve the case.
Knispel continues: “Just from what I’ve heard from the press reports, I can’t understand why this deal was made.”