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CRIME

Youths involved in U-Bahn death turn themselves in

Two of the three young men involved in a death outside a Berlin U-Bahn metro station turned themselves in on Saturday evening. Early Saturday morning, a 23-year-old died after being chased by assailants and hit by a car.

Published: 18 September 2011 10:27 CEST
Youths involved in U-Bahn death turn themselves in
Photo: DPA

The two men, 21 and 22, were part of a group of three men police were looking for in connection with the death of the 23-year-old, a spokesman said on Sunday.

“They admitted that they had something to do with the case and were arrested,” he said.

On Saturday at around 4:50 am, the 23-year-old and a companion were attacked by three other men in the Kaiserdamm U-Bahn station in western Berlin. While one man managed to flee, the 23-year-old was hit by a passing car after he ran from the station and attempted to cross the road.

Despite efforts by emergency personnel, he died on the scene.

Police did not release additional details about the two men now in custody, saying only that the case had been passed on to the Berlin homicide division.

Over the past few months, there have been a number of reports of brutal assaults in Berlin subway stations. The conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) have used the issue in their election campaign to cast doubt on the current government’s record on security and law enforcement.

At Easter, a 29-year-old was severely injured by an 18-year-old man in the Friedrichshain station. That case has come to trial and a verdict is expected next week.

DPA/kdj

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BERLIN

Tesla’s factory near Berlin gets approval for extension despite protests

Tesla has confirmed its plans to extend its production site outside Berlin had been approved, overcoming opposition from residents and environmental activists.

Published: 17 May 2024 08:54 CEST
Tesla's factory near Berlin gets approval for extension despite protests

The US electric car manufacturer said on Thursday it was “extremely pleased” that local officials in the town of Grünheide, where the factory is located, had voted to approve the extension.

Tesla opened the plant – its only production location in Europe – in 2022 at the end of a tumultuous two-year approval and construction process.

The carmaker had to clear a series of administrative and legal hurdles before production could begin at the site, including complaints from locals about the site’s environmental impact.

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

Plans to double capacity to produce a million cars a year at the site, which employs some 12,000 people, were announced in 2023.

The plant, which already occupies around 300 hectares (740 acres), was set to be expanded by a further 170 hectares.

But Tesla had to scale back its ambitions to grow the already massive site after locals opposed the plan in a non-binding poll.

The entrance to the Tesla factory in Brandenburg.

The entrance to the Tesla factory in Brandenburg. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Lutz Deckwerth

Their concerns included deforestation required for the expansion, the plant’s high water consumption, and an increase in road traffic in the area.

In the new proposal, Tesla has scrapped plans for logistics and storage centres and on-site employee facilities, while leaving more of the surrounding forest standing.

Thursday’s council vote in Grünheide drew strong interest from residents and was picketed by protestors opposing the extension, according to German media.

Protests against the plant have increased since February, and in March the plant was forced to halt production following a suspected arson attack on nearby power lines claimed by a far-left group.

Activists have also built makeshift treehouses in the woodland around the factory to block the expansion, and environmentalists gathered earlier this month in their hundreds at the factory to protest the enlargement plans.

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