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CRIME

‘Teen’ asylum seeker on trial for Freiburg murder is 33, says father

Hussein K. is currently on trial over the rape and murder of a 19-year-old student. He told migration authorities he was 17 and that his father was killed in Afghanistan. But now his father, alive and well in Iran, has told the court his son is 33.

‘Teen’ asylum seeker on trial for Freiburg murder is 33, says father
Photo: DPA

Prosecutors were able to track down Hussein K.’s father when they came across a contact on his mobile phone. The defendant told them that they could contact his mother on the number. But when an interpreter called the number in the presence of two judges, the person who picked up was his father.

The older man read out details from his son’s birth certificate which state that he was born on January 29th 1984, presiding judge Kathrin Schenk said in the district court in Freiburg on Friday.

Hussein K. had told German immigration authorities that he had fled Afghanistan after his father was killed in battles with Taliban fighters. Due to the fact that he also said he was 17, he was treated by German authorities as an unaccompanied minor and given foster parents.

But there have been some doubts raised about the father’s testament as the interpreter said he could have been referring to the Persian calendar, which would have to be recalculated.

Previous analysis of a tooth belonging to the defendant also suggests he is at least 22 years of age.

The new evidence could be of crucial importance in determining how long Hussein K.’s sentence will be if he is found guilty. If the judges decide that he was a minor at the time of the crime, he will face a lesser sentence than if he is found to have been an adult.

The defendant has already admitted to raping and strangling his victim until she lost consciousness late at night in a Freiburg park. A postmortem found that she drowned in the river Dreisam.

Hussein K. arrived in Germany in November 2015 without proper documentation. He had already been sent to jail for pushing a young woman from a cliff in Greece, but was released early. He then fled his parole to Germany and Greek authorities failed to issue an international arrest warrant for him.

A verdict on the trial is expected early next year.

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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