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CRIME

Trial starts of women who tied up their ex and left him naked in the woods

On Monday, the trial of two women who stand accused of kidnapping, threatening and leaving their ex-lover naked in the woods began in Frankfurt Oder regional court.

Trial starts of women who tied up their ex and left him naked in the woods
Photo: DPA

Yvonne S. (39), the victim's ex-wife, and Birgit K. (37), the victim's ex-girlfriend, are facing charges of deprivation of liberty and grievous bodily harm after the pair allegedly kidnapped Thomas L. and left him bound and naked in the woods after physically assaulting him, reports Bild

The incident occurred in March 2015 and reportedly involved four as-yet unknown men.

According to the account that the ex-wife gave at the trial, while crying in her car at a bus stop one day, she was approached by a stranger one day, who offered to help her hurt someone.

She arranged to meet the man three days later in a supermarket car park but there was never a collective plan of action.

On the day of the crime, she went with the co-defendant to confront her ex and “somehow” they ended up in the agreed upon car park where the stranger was waiting for her with three other men.

The rest of the course of action was apparently “no longer in our hands”, said the 39-year-old. She sat in the driver's seat and her co-defendant sat in the passenger's seat while the four men picked up the victim. 

The women claim they only wanted to give their mutual ex-lover a warning, but the men then allegedly punched and kicked 45-year-old Thomas L., tied him up with cable ties and covered up his eyes and mouth.

The man sustained serious injuries from the attack including brain trauma, bruising and hematomas, as well as resultant psychological issues such as anxiety.

Thomas L. was then left tied up and told to count slowly to 100 before freeing himself but his phone, wallet and clothes were all taken, so he couldn't call for help and was left to find his way out of the forest on foot in temperatures of 6C which later fell to 2C, reports Bild.

The man could only find a bin bag to cover himself up and eventually got help from a driver on a nearby country road.

In defence of her actions, the victim's ex-wife said that her ex-husband was physically abusive during their relationship and had called her up repeatedly after her divorce to harass her. He had also allegedly hacked her email account and so she felt “hunted and watched”.

The victim didn’t make an appearance on the first day in court but is expected to appear later on in the trial.

Judge Ulrich Karmann made it clear on the first day that he did not believe the defendant’s story about the identities of the four men and how they came to be present and said that with a real confession the women could avoid jail time.

According to Bild, the trial is expected to conclude in November.

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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