German investigators identify far-right suspect in 1970 Munich Jewish centre arson attack

Munich investigators have pinned down a far-right suspect responsible for a notorious 1970 arson attack on a Jewish center that claimed seven lives and left 15 others injured, according to police and prosecutors. The suspect, a 25-year-old German national who died in 2020, was identified after new evidence emerged when a witness came forward and officials reopened the case last year, the Munich police and prosecutors stated in a joint statement.

The attack on February 13, 1970, was one of the deadliest incidents targeting the Jewish community in post-war Germany. The arson, carried out using petrol in the wooden stairwell of the retirement home and guest house that housed the center, quickly engulfed the premises, trapping the occupants. Seven Jewish residents perished in the blaze, while 15 others were wounded, with four sustaining serious injuries.

While the suspect's identity was not disclosed by police and prosecutors, Der Spiegel magazine partially identified him as Bernd V., describing him as a right-wing extremist with a severe antisemitic bent and a fixation on Hitler. The statement emphasized that while a "legal clarification" could not be made due to the suspect's demise under German law, new investigations strongly suggest that he was the perpetrator.