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German couple tortured two women to death, police say | German couple tortured two women to death, police say |
(about 1 hour later) | |
Police in Germany investigating the deaths of two women say they were the victims of a couple who held them hostage and tortured them. | Police in Germany investigating the deaths of two women say they were the victims of a couple who held them hostage and tortured them. |
They say a man and his ex-wife placed dating advertisements to lure the women to their home. | They say a man and his ex-wife placed dating advertisements to lure the women to their home. |
The suspects - Wilfried W, 46, and Angelika B, 47 - were arrested last Wednesday and charged with manslaughter. | The suspects - Wilfried W, 46, and Angelika B, 47 - were arrested last Wednesday and charged with manslaughter. |
The man denies any wrongdoing but his partner is reported to have confessed. | The man denies any wrongdoing but his partner is reported to have confessed. |
Detectives believe there may be further victims and are searching the couple's home in Hoexter, north-western Germany. | Detectives believe there may be further victims and are searching the couple's home in Hoexter, north-western Germany. |
Police have for weeks been investigating the death of a 41-year-old woman, known as Susanne F, who they believe was held hostage and tortured in the couple's residence. | Police have for weeks been investigating the death of a 41-year-old woman, known as Susanne F, who they believe was held hostage and tortured in the couple's residence. |
She eventually died in hospital last month, after the couple allegedly tried to take her back to her own home. | She eventually died in hospital last month, after the couple allegedly tried to take her back to her own home. |
'Serious physical torture' | |
At a news conference on Tuesday, police said they now believed the couple had killed and dismembered another young woman before disposing of her remains in their fireplace. | At a news conference on Tuesday, police said they now believed the couple had killed and dismembered another young woman before disposing of her remains in their fireplace. |
Annika W, 33, also from Lower Saxony, died in August 2014. Like Suzanne F, she had responded to a dating advertisement in late 2013. | |
"The victim suffered again and again from very serious physical torture like being hit all over the body, chained to heaters, being enslaved and beaten", chief prosecutor Ralf Meyer told a news conference. | |
"Sometimes the victim had to sleep on the bare floor of cold rooms. Hence, her physical condition became worse and worse." | |
He said in summer 2014, the victim reached a life-threatening state, as a consequence of which she died on 1 August, 2014. | |
Police believe the motive for the murders was more likely to be power-related than sexual. | Police believe the motive for the murders was more likely to be power-related than sexual. |
Angelika B is reported to have made a full confession, arguing that she only obeyed the man after also being tortured by him. Further investigations are said to support her statement. | Angelika B is reported to have made a full confession, arguing that she only obeyed the man after also being tortured by him. Further investigations are said to support her statement. |
The head of the investigation, Ralf Oestermann, said officers were conducting a detailed forensic examination of the house. | |
"We cannot totally exclude the possibly that another woman died there," he told reporters. | |
The full names of those involved in the case have not been released inline with German privacy laws. | The full names of those involved in the case have not been released inline with German privacy laws. |