Cologne drug war: Process against torturers begins!

Cologne drug war: Process against torturers begins!

On April 11, 2025, a sensational process began at the Cologne District Court, which illuminates the dark machinations in the Cologne drug war. Three men from the Netherlands are accused, at the age of 21, 24 and 30, who have to answer for serious allegations. They are charged with joint hostage -taking and dangerous bodily harm. In this case, the accusation against the oldest defendant, who is also said to have committed a violation of the weapons law, weighs particularly hard. According to n-tv to procure. An unknown amount of money had been promised for this information.

The accused are said to have tortured in a warehouse in Hürth, where they have tied up the victims and brutally abused. According to reports, the victims were beaten with a solid cable and pulled over the head with plastic bags. A particularly cruel incident occurred when one of the victims was cut into their arms with a "power-like knife". The reports document that the ill -treatment lasted for several hours, while the victims were also chased with threats such as pulling toe or cutting toes.

a complex drug war

The incidents in Hürth are not isolated, but are part of a much larger and complex drug war that has grasped the region. The robbery of 350 kilograms of marijuana is only part of a violent cycle in which explosions and shots on residential buildings were registered. The context provides ZDF Additional information about similar incidents, such as a robbery of 700 kilogram of marijuana, which took place in June 2024. Here, drugs were also secured with brutal violence and the opponents were tied up and abused.

The drug war not only had a number of brutal deeds, but also severely affected public security in the region. An outbreak of kidnappings and other hostage frames caused a sensation nationwide. The police in North Rhine-Westphalia have taken increased security measures for ongoing processes to prevent possible further riots. The Cologne Kripo boss, Michael Esser, described the arrest of 23 accused in January 2025 as a "outstanding success". In his statements, he warned of a phenomenon known as "Crime AS A Service", in which young men from the Netherlands are recruited as henchmen for drug gangs.

• three defendants: 21, 24, 30 years old
• Allegation: Community hostage, dangerous bodily harm
• Additional accusation against 30-year-olds: violation of the weapons law
• Victim: Several hours, extremely brutal methods
• robbery of 350 kg marijuana as the trigger of the violence spirals
• public uncertainty by drug wars

The brutal incidents that come to light as part of this process are an expression of a violent discussion in the drug milieu, which has not only assumed local but also national dimensions. The flood of acts of violence has alerted many citizens and leads to deep distrust of security in the affected regions.