Horrible torture shared apartment: Life sentences for murderers in Höhenberg!

Horrible torture shared apartment: Life sentences for murderers in Höhenberg!

A dark chapter in Cologne's criminal history has now reached its final conclusion before the Federal Court of Justice (BGH). In the case of the “Höhenberg torture shared apartment”, in which a 21-year-old woman was brutally abused for days, the court confirmed the life sentences for two sisters and a man. They had already been sentenced to life sentences in February 2024, whereby the element of cruelty in murder was also recognized, as ksta.de reports.

In a horrifying scenario, the defendants kept their roommate like a slave and denied her basic needs such as food and water. The case took the presiding judge Sabine Kretzschmar's breath away and she spoke of a “human abyss”. Unfortunately, the extreme mistreatment led to multiple organ failure for the victim, who died in hospital on July 6, 2020 after being freed by the police on April 28, 2020.

The atrocities in the “torture shared apartment”

The heartbreaking record of the crimes is horrifying: the 21-year-old was forced to ask permission when she wanted to shower or go to the toilet, which is more than just humiliation. She often had to urinate on the floor and later clean it up herself. They knew they could kill the woman, and yet they put her in a position that led to her painful death. The beating with steel-toed shoes and the brutal handling of her body led to serious injuries and an enormous lack of fluids, which was ultimately fatal, according to the findings of the Federal Court of Justice and the public prosecutor's office. [express.de] also informs that the ex-boyfriend of the deceased, who himself suffers from intellectual disability, was involved in the abuse. He was sentenced to four and a half years in prison for grievous bodily harm.

The defendants took advantage of the fact that the original residents of the apartment in Höhenberg were considered mentally inferior. This became the basis for their brutal crackdown as they took control of the situation after their arrival in 2020. The abuse they committed is almost incomprehensible and shows unscrupulous cruelty.

Criminal consequences

The BGH made it clear that it saw no legal errors in this case and declared the judgments to be legally binding. In addition to the life sentences, preventive detention was also ordered for two of the defendants, which means that they may continue to be held in custody even after they have served their sentence. The brutal actions of the defendants and the role of the ex-boyfriend paint a picture of a deep moral decay that the justice system cannot accept.

The tragic end of the 21-year-old not only raises questions, but also calls for vigilance. Abuse that occurs under the radar requires our full attention and the awareness to recognize grievances in a timely manner. Such cases painfully show that human behavior leads to deep abysses and that society as a whole is required to create and maintain fair and humane conditions.