Soccer attack at soccer tournament
“Every time they talk about it, Paul dies a second time.”
As of: 12:24 p.m. | Reading time: 3 minutes
15-year-old declared brain dead after brawl at soccer tournament
An escalation on the football field has come to a tragic end in Frankfurt am Main. A 15-year-old from Berlin was declared brain dead after a fight at a youth soccer tournament.
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The trial has begun in Frankfurt against a 17-year-old who is said to have knocked down a 15-year-old at a soccer tournament. The teenager died as a result of the attack. The victim’s parents are co-plaintiffs and they don’t appear in court – they wouldn’t be able to cope emotionally.
Eight months after the death of a 15-year-old soccer player, the trial against the alleged perpetrator has begun in the regional court. The teenager (16 years old at the time of the crime) is said to have hit Paul P. in the neck with his fist so hard that the Berliner was declared brain dead three days later.
According to information from “Bild”, the public prosecutor’s office accuses the alleged perpetrator of bodily harm resulting in death in the indictment. On Whit Sunday last year, players from the JFC Berlin club and the French club FC Metz formed a pack after a game at an international youth soccer tournament as part of the “Germany Cup” in Frankfurt am Main.
After the final whistle of the game, the defendant is said to have first kicked the victim in the shin and then struck him in the upper body with his fists. According to the prosecution, the Moroccan, who has been playing in the FC Metz youth academy since 2022, delivered a targeted punch to the victim’s lower left neck/cheek area from behind.
Victim dies of severe brain injury
Paul P. collapsed on the pitch and had to be resuscitated. He was transported to a clinic where doctors fought for his life. “After a fight broke out last Pentecost Sunday after a football game as part of an international youth tournament in Eckenheim, the 15-year-old victim died in hospital today as a result of his serious brain injuries,” said a statement Police.
The crime took place on Pentecost at the SV Viktoria Preußen eV facility in the Eckenheim district of Frankfurt
Quelle: pa/dpa/Boris Roessler
“My client didn’t want to hurt anyone and just play football. It is a dramatic accident. We have a lot of sympathy for the family of the deceased,” said lawyer Dr. Seyed Sharam Iranbomy, who represents the alleged perpetrator, to BILD.
The now 17-year-old alleged perpetrator has been in custody in the Rockenberg prison since last year. According to BILD information, he told the judge that he could not remember the blow and spoke of it as a “mess.” It is said that when he heard during the interrogation that Paul was probably going to die, he started crying again and again.
The idea of education is at the forefront of juvenile proceedings
The indictment consists of a total of 34 pages. The trial, which is being held behind closed doors due to the defendant’s young age, involves 20 witnesses and five experts. Seven more dates are scheduled for the trial. In juvenile proceedings, the focus is on the idea of education. According to the public prosecutor’s office, the players and coaches from both teams are invited as witnesses, which is why most of the witnesses are minors.
The parents of the deceased appear as co-plaintiffs in the process. They were not there on Thursday and, according to their lawyer, will not come to further appointments. “The reason is that every time they talk about it, Paul dies a second time. They wouldn’t make it emotionally,” said Berlin lawyer René Lau, who represents the parents in court.
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