Overview

• The third criminal senate dismissed the federal prosecutor's appeal, confirming the 2024 Koblenz ruling and making the acquittal final.
• The Koblenz court concluded the accused said Saarlouis should see that 'something like that happen' rather than 'something burn,' which did not prove intent to prompt a fire attack.
• Presiding judge Jürgen Schäfer noted that calling for 'randale' carries a different character than the lethal arson that killed one resident.
• The main perpetrator, Peter Werner S., was convicted in October 2023 of murder and attempted murder under juvenile law and is serving a six-year-ten-month sentence, final since January.
• The 1991 attack killed 27-year-old Samuel Kofi Yeboah while 20 of 21 residents escaped with some injured, and the case was reopened years later after a 2007 boast triggered new investigations.