German court sentences mother to life for killing her 5 kids
A court in Germany has found a 28-year-old mother guilty and sentenced her to life in prison for the murder of five of her six children
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The regional court in Wuppertal established the particular gravity of the crime in its verdict. In most cases, such a finding rules out release from prison after 15 years, the amount of time often served by people given live sentences in Germany.
The children - Melina, Leonie, Sophie, Timo and Luca - were killed in September 2020. Prosecutors said their mother first sedated the youngsters and then either drowned or suffocated them, dpa reported. The children ranged in age from 1 to 8.
Prosecutors think a photo the woman's ex-partner sent showing him with a new companion prompted the killings. The mother had written back to the ex-partner that he would never see his children again, dpa reported.
The woman sent a sixth child, her eldest, to stay with his grandmother before the killings. She then tried to kill herself by jumping in front of a train at the Duesseldorf railway station and suffered serious, but not life-threatening injuries.