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Cologne in the crosshairs: Drug war escalates with hostage taking and explosives!
A trial in the drug war begins today at the Cologne regional court, in which a key witness from Cologne-Rodenkirchen is testifying.
Cologne in the crosshairs: Drug war escalates with hostage taking and explosives!
It was a busy day at the Cologne Regional Court today: lockdowns and controls caused a stir on Monday morning, as an important witness in the trial surrounding the “Cologne Drug War” is expected. This 24-year-old has been in custody since July 2023 after he was arrested during a hostage situation in Cologne-Rodenkirchen. The WDR reported that the witness is talking about his youth in the socially disadvantaged Cologne-Ostheim and will share his experiences as a witness.
His haunting stories are not for the faint of heart. He tells of a friend from elementary school who became a drug gang and started selling cocaine early in Cologne-Kalk. With a life filled with wealth, this friend kept his earnings in shoeboxes and cruised around in luxury cars. But the dark world of drug trafficking has its dark side. In the summer of 2023, a large shipment of marijuana worth around 1.5 million euros was stolen, which ultimately led to massive pressure on the friend, who eventually fled Germany when he was suspected of having contact with a drug lord in the Netherlands.
Hostage taking and explosions
The trial is taking place at the same time as a brutal battle in the Rhenish drug scene, in which five explosive attacks have been carried out in the last two weeks. Three of them happened in Cologne, the others in Engelskirchen and Duisburg. The suspected drug traffickers of the Dutch Mocro Mafia even used explosives to get back the stolen 300 kilograms of marijuana. The Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger reported on a kidnapping of a couple from Bochum, which also took place in Cologne-Rodenkirchen and is keeping the security authorities very busy.
After a nerve-wracking operation, a special operations team freed the hostages on Friday evening. Four suspected kidnappers were caught, while seven men are in custody - six for communal hostage-taking and grievous bodily harm, one for aiding and abetting. Police found money and cell phones during searches in Cologne, fueling fears of possible further acts of revenge.
Rising Threats: Mocro Mafia and its brutality
The security situation in Cologne and all of North Rhine-Westphalia is getting worse. According to Oliver Huth, the North Rhine-Westphalia head of the Association of German Criminal Police Officers, this is a new quality of violence being unleashed by drug gangs. The Spiegel reports a growing increase in cocaine and cannabis shipments from the Benelux states on the German black market, which is not only the case Rhinelanders, but all of Germany, were put on alert.
The situation remains tense and the population is wondering where this spiraling violence will end. As the trials continue at the Cologne district court, citizens are faced with the challenge of focusing on the dark machinations in the drug trade and not allowing themselves to be overwhelmed by fear. A vicious circle that is difficult to break and everyone is eagerly awaiting the outcome.