In the case of the three-year-old girl from Dinslaken on the Lower Rhine who was buried lifeless in a canal, both parents are now suspected of murder. The child’s 39-year-old mother was also arrested in Dinslaken and taken into custody, the public prosecutor’s office and police in Duisburg said. The father (40) is already in custody. Both are said to have intentionally severely abused the child and ultimately killed him.
On October 6th, the man appeared at the police station in Dinslaken and reported the death of his daughter. According to him, he found the child lifeless in the basement of his home on October 1st and then sank him – weighed down with weights – in the Ruhr area town of Oberhausen in the Rhine-Herne Canal. Divers recovered the body. The autopsy later revealed that the three-year-old had choked on vomited food.
The city of Dinslaken reported that the two siblings of the girl who was killed had been placed in a foster family. The psychological support that has already begun for the two children will be continued intensively.
Father led the investigators to the site on the canal
The girl’s case attracted a lot of attention. The suspect was initially taken into custody for grievous bodily harm and false imprisonment resulting in death. Now there is suspicion of murder.
The German showed the investigators the spot on the canal in question, but did not comment again afterwards. The child’s mother – also a German citizen – also remains silent about the allegations, as a police spokesman said. Both would be represented by a public defender. According to initial investigations, it was said that the father may have locked his child in a cellar as punishment, where he choked on vomit.
It was reported a few days ago that the autopsy did not provide any evidence of “injuries that caused death”. There are also mistreatments that leave no visible traces, said the police spokesman. It is not yet possible to comment on details.
