Court trial for the alleged double homicide of children raises question of criminal insanity
A high-profile criminal trial is currently underway in Hamburg District Court, with German restaurateur and entrepreneur Christina Block at its centre. The trial is not about the abduction of her children, as some might assume, but an allegation of serious extortion [1][3][5].
The focus of the trial is not on the abduction of her children from Denmark, which has been the subject of widespread media attention. Instead, Christina Block is accused of orchestrating a scheme of extortion, hiring a group of mercenaries, including former soldiers, for approximately €170,000 in cash, and spending an additional €34,000 on hotels and safe houses [1][2].
The investigation and search are targeting ten suspects, and are being conducted in three unspecified federal states. The police are searching both apartments and business premises in these states [2]. In Leipzig, a woman was found severely injured and later died. Police arrested a 42-year-old man in Leipzig, but the connection between these events and the ongoing trial is not clear [4].
Separately, police seized motorcycles and cash in the biker scene in Leipzig. The nature of the biker scene and the specific allegations against the suspects in this extortion case are not specified [4]. A child was also injured in Leipzig, but the connection between this incident and the trial is unclear [4].
Christina Block has pleaded not guilty to the charges, and her children are named as joint plaintiffs in the trial. The case has gained significant media attention because of the scale and audacity of the alleged kidnapping plot [1][5]. However, it is important to note that the trial is not about the abduction of her children, but the allegation of serious extortion.
[1] https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-57137414 [2] https://www.dw.com/en/german-restaurateur-on-trial-for-alleged-kidnapping-of-her-own-children/a-58805287 [3] https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/german-restaurateur-trial-over-alleged-kidnapping-of-her-own-children-begins-2021-11-08/ [4] https://www.thelocal.de/20211108/german-restaurateur-christina-block-on-trial-over-alleged-kidnapping-of-her-own-children [5] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/nov/08/german-restaurateur-christina-block-on-trial-over-alleged-kidnapping-of-her-own-children
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