A man was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison in Germany on Tuesday for fatally shooting a gas station clerk over a dispute about face masks.
The September 2021 murder in the western German city of Idar-Oberstein stunned the nation. According to the German news agency dpa, the defendant was also convicted of illegal weapons possession since he lacked a license for the firearm used in the murder.
The 50-year-old claimed officers he acted “out of rage” when attempting to purchase beer at the petrol station after the 20-year-old clerk, identified as Alex W., refused to serve him without a mask, according to authorities.
In order to prevent the spread of coronavirus, Germany mandated mask use in stores at the time.
The suspect, a German citizen named in local media as Mario N., reportedly left the petrol station after the altercation but returned half an hour later to shoot the clerk in the head, according to the police.
A police vehicle is pictured at a gas station in Idar-Oberstein, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, on September 21, 2021, after an employee was tragically shot by a man who opposed the national face mask requirement. Thomas Frey/image partnership/Getty
Nicole Frohn, the prosecutor, explained at the outset of the trial how Mario N. As he perceived the measures implemented to combat the pandemic as an infringement of his rights, his anger grew.
She claimed, “Because he realized he couldn’t contact the responsible lawmakers, he chose to kill Alex W.”
He fled the scene originally, but surrendered himself up after authorities started a massive manhunt.
According to dpa, the state court in Bad Kreuznach determined that the defendant’s right-wing extremism and hostility toward the state were the primary reasons for the murder.
It was stated that the defendant considered the clerk as a representation of the state and its coronavirus policy and sought to “make an example” of him after he refused to comply with the mask requirement.
The defense attorneys in the six-month trial sought a conviction for manslaughter. They contended that the suspect, who according to an expert was intoxicated when the fatal gunshot was fired, could only be held legally liable to a certain extent for his acts.
The prosecution had requested that the court declare the defendant “very culpable,” which would have effectively excluded him from the 15-year early release that is usual for German life-sentenced offenders. Judges didn’t do so.
Reuters claimed that resistance to COVID-19 limits in Germany increased in 2020 and 2021, with tens of thousands of vaccine opponents and extremists taking to the streets.
The victim’s mother, Michaela Rech, was quoted by Reuters as saying, “No matter what the result was, it would not have changed what happened or the person who was lost, and it would not have brought my kid back.”