News Editor Ajda Ender /Harrisons
A 39-year-old man accused of murdering three neighbours, dismembering one of them and storing her torso and head in his fridge has gone on trial in Germany.
Picture shows the suspect Martin L. pictured in front of a shopping center in Zwiesel, Germany, undated.
Accused killer Martin L. appeared at Deggendorf Regional Court in Bavaria on 1 October over the killings in the nearby town of Zwiesel, in the Bavarian Forest close to the Czech border.
Laura E., 22, poses in undated photo. She was killed in the horror house in Zwiesel, Germany. Note: Private photo taken from social media. (Harrisons)
Prosecutors allege he murdered two women, aged 26 and 22, for sexual gratification before killing the younger victim’s boyfriend when he began searching for her.
Laura E., 22, poses with boyfriend in undated photo. She was killed in the horror house in Zwiesel, Germany. Note: Private photo taken from social media. (Harrisons)
The first victim, Michaela N., 26, lived on the floor below Martin L. and was allegedly killed after going to his flat on the evening of 29 June 2025 following an argument with her boyfriend.
Laura E., 22, poses with boyfriend in undated photo. She was killed in the horror house in Zwiesel, Germany. Note: Private photo taken from social media. (Harrisons)
According to the indictment, they consumed drugs and alcohol before Michaela fell asleep on a sofa.
Laura E., 22, poses in undated photo. She was killed in the horror house in Zwiesel, Germany. Note: Private photo taken from social media. (Harrisons)
Prosecutors say Martin L. then strangled her with his hands and a charging cable after developing sexual feelings towards her.
Picture shows the victim Michaela N., 26, undated. She lived on the ground floor below her killer. Note: Private photo. (Harrisons)
Three or four days later, he allegedly cut up Michaela’s body with a kitchen knife and put her torso and head into blue rubbish bags in his refrigerator.
Other remains were allegedly placed in a sports bag and dumped in woodland.
His second alleged victim, Laura E., 22, reportedly went to his flat on 16 July because of an electricity problem in the building.
Martin L. is accused of hitting her with a beer bottle before striking her at least 13 times on the head with a hammer and suffocating her by wrapping cling film around her head.
Prosecutors allege he sexually abused Laura’s body after her death before hiding it beneath a bed frame.
Laura’s boyfriend, Martin W., who was more than three decades older than her and also lived in the building, repeatedly came looking for her.
Fearing that Martin W. would discover what had happened, Martin L. allegedly attacked him from behind with the same hammer before stabbing him and strangling him with a cable.
Martin W. died from severe head injuries.
Several days later, the accused travelled to Austria and approached police in Linz, Upper Austria, where he said he had killed three people.
German police subsequently found the bodies of two women and one man, as well as severed body parts, at his address in Zwiesel.
Martin L. was led into court in handcuffs and leg restraints wearing a grey suit and dark baseball cap while shielding his face with a blue folder.
He remained silent as the charges were read and avoided looking towards relatives of the victims.
His lawyer said Martin L. intends to respond to the allegations later in the trial but was not yet ready to do so.
The father of one victim told the court he now works almost every day to try to distract himself from his daughter’s death.
Laura’s mother said: “I know it happened, but I can’t accept it.”
Martin W.’s mother told the court that she tries every day to “fight my way back into life”, adding: “I lost my son in a brutal way. I can’t get over it.”
Martin L. faces three counts of murder, with prosecutors alleging each killing was carried out by exploiting the victims’ vulnerability or taking them by surprise.
The trial is scheduled to run for ten hearing days, with 34 witnesses and five experts expected to give evidence before a possible verdict on 19 November.
(Harrisons)
Loading ...