Overview

• The 44-year-old defendant is on trial at the Berlin regional court on a manslaughter charge and is initially remaining silent, according to his lawyer.
• Prosecutors say the attack occurred on April 17 in the woman’s Berlin-Britz apartment, with four stabs to the front of the torso and one to the back using a kitchen knife.
• The eldest son, 22, told the court he woke to an argument, saw his father holding a knife, pushed him away, and witnessed the last stab.
• The victim fled into the stairwell, collapsed from her injuries, and died at the scene as police arrested the suspect on site; he has been in custody since.
• Authorities note the victim had a restraining order in effect until June 2025 and had previously reported assaults before withdrawing the complaints, and the case is being reported as a suspected femicide with the couple’s four children present in the home.