Suspect In German Politician’s Killing Changes Previous Testimony

The chief suspect in the 2019 murder of German politician Walter Luebcke, on Wednesday changed his testimony and denied firing the shot that killed the politician.
Luebcke, a local politician from Kassel in the Central German state of Hesse, was fatally shot in the head in early June on the terrace of his residence.
Stephan E, who was accused of stabbing a 22-year-old Iraqi asylum seeker in the back and seriously injuring him in Jan. 2016, was arrested in connection with the killing some weeks ago.
He had initially admitted to the crime before withdrawing his confession.
They both reportedly attended an informational event at the refugee centre where the Iraqi asylum seeker had been living in 2015. The politician was heckled by the crowd as he defended his policies at the event.
On Wednesday, Stephan E’s lawyer said his client denied firing the shot that killed Luebcke during fresh testimony given to an investigating judge.
Lawyer Frank Hannig said his client believed the fatal shot was fired by Markus H, a second suspect who was detained for his connection to the crime.
According to Hannig, his client had wanted to protect Markus H with his initial confession and that protection and financial advantages for his family were promised in return.