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CRIME

Man ignites own flat to see neighbours burn

A 51-year-old Bonn man has gone on trial for starting a fire in his apartment that he hoped would kill his neighbours, Cologne daily Express reported on Tuesday.

Man ignites own flat to see neighbours burn
Photo: DPA

The “fire devil,” as the paper called him, faces murder and arson charges because he was willing to burn down his own flat in April – just to see his neighbours die in the flames.

The man, who is reportedly an alcoholic, was drunk when he lit paper and twigs in his apartment, then left the building with his television and remote control to watch the inferno, the paper reported.

“Huge black smoke clouds were coming out of the house door,” the man’s social worker told the court on Monday, adding that he had been on his way to check on him that day. “He sat on the television grinning and laughing. He said the building should burn and the neighbours should die along with it.”

The man, born in Austria, had apparently been involved in a feud with the neighbours, a married couple, for years, Express reported. “He often rampages when he’s drunk,” the woman neighbour told the court. “He’s already smashed in car windows.”

But the alleged arsonist refuted her claims, telling the court the couple had been responsible for his arrest 18 times.

The man’s arch enemies were not in the apartment when the man lit the fire and the fire department was able to quell the flames before the fire caused extensive damage to the building.

The man denied the charges before the county court, saying that he’d set fire wood to dry out in front of his wood-burning stove, and that it had accidentally caught fire.

But judge Udo Buhren said the man’s story is unlikely. “An unburned cigarette box was in the stove,” he told the paper.

The Reichshof court spokeswoman told The Local she was unable to comment on the case because court proceedings are ongoing, but laughed at the suggestion that the case was “absurd.”

BUSINESS

Elon Musk visits Tesla’s sabotage-hit German factory

Elon Musk travelled Wednesday to Tesla's factory near Berlin to lend his workers "support" after the plant was forced to halt production by a suspected arson attack on nearby power lines.

Elon Musk visits Tesla's sabotage-hit German factory

The Tesla CEO addressed thousands of employees on arrival at the site, accusing “eco-terrorists” of the sabotage as he defended his company’s green credentials.

With his son X AE A-XII in his arms, Musk said: “I am here to support you.”

The billionaire’s visit came a week after power lines supplying the electric carmaker’s only European plant were set on fire in an act of sabotage claimed by a far-left group called the Vulkangruppe (Volcano Group).

READ ALSO: Far-left group claims ‘sabotage’ on Tesla’s German factory

Musk had said then that the attack was “extremely dumb”, while the company said it would cost it several hundred million euros.

A week on, the lights have come back on at the site, but Andre Thierig, who heads the site, said on LinkedIn that it would “take a bit of time” before production is back to full speed.

Industry experts have warned that the reputational impact caused by the sabotage on the region could be more severe than the losses suffered by Tesla.

Tesla’s German plant started production in 2022 following an arduous two-year approval and construction process dogged by administrative and legal obstacles.

Tesla wants to expand the site by 170 hectares and boost production up to one million vehicles annually to feed Europe’s growing demand for electric cars and take on rivals who are shifting away from combustion engine vehicles.

But the plans have annoyed local residents, who voted against the project in a non-binding ballot last month.

After the vote, Tesla said it might have to rethink the plans. Environmental activists opposed to the expansion of the factory have recently also set up a camp in a wooded area near the plant.

READ ALSO: Why is Tesla’s expansion near Berlin so controversial?

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