A suspected “honor killing” has shocked Germany: 15-year-old Ronja was brutally killed in Rhineland-Palatinate. Her parents, who come from Afghanistan, are said to have been disturbed by the girl’s lifestyle. FOCUS online has the horrifying details.

A crime that shocks, a barbaric act of violence that leaves us speechless – in the middle of Germany!

A 39-year-old father and 34-year-old mother – both from Afghanistan – have been in custody since Tuesday. Charge: manslaughter. Hassan M. and Maryam M. are said to have killed their daughter Ronja (15).

Probable motive: According to investigators, the parents living in Pirmasens (Rhineland-Palatinate) “did not agree with the girl’s lifestyle”.

So did Ronja M. have to die because, in her parents’ eyes, she lived “too western”? Because she enjoyed her freedom, because she represented different values ​​than those common in Afghanistan – and thereby “sullied” the family honor?

The fact is: The teenager’s body was found on Monday shortly after 6 p.m. on the banks of the Rhine in Worms, around 120 kilometers from her home. That morning, the mother reported to the Pirmasens police station and expressed the suspicion that her daughter might have been killed on Saturday evening.

The Mainz criminal police finally discovered the dead teenager in the Rheindürkheim district. The father was arrested shortly afterwards. The mother also came under suspicion because she apparently got caught up in massive contradictions with the police.

The autopsy of the body revealed that the teenager died “by drowning.” At least, that was what the authorities’ official statements said.

However, according to research by FOCUS online, the forensic findings contain further shocking details that suggest the use of massive violence.

“Bleeding in the neck muscles and hematomas in the upper body and extremities were found,” confirmed senior public prosecutor Alexander Fassel from the Mainz public prosecutor’s office on Thursday in response to a request from FOCUS online. In other words: Ronja could have been strangled and beaten.

Whether the location where the body was found is also the crime scene remains the subject of the investigation. “There is no concrete evidence that the crime scene is not in the area where the body was found,” said Fassel.

The senior public prosecutor continued: “There is a suspicion that the accused decided to kill their daughter because they did not agree with her lifestyle.” Corresponding evidence must be “carefully examined in the course of the investigation.”

The two accused have already admitted to the charges to the police. When asked by FOCUS online whether they had confessed, Alexander Fassel replied that no details were being released to the outside world.

The mother’s lawyer, Victoria C. Koch from Mainz, confirmed to FOCUS online that she had already visited her client in prison. “We have discussed the charges and will continue to discuss them. I don’t want to say anything more at this point.”

Koch points out that the case is “very fresh and the investigation is still in its early stages.” She also reports that her client’s statement to investigators was made without legal counsel present. It is currently unclear to what extent this will play a role in the further proceedings.

Meanwhile, senior public prosecutor Fassel told FOCUS online that “three proceedings are pending” against the 39-year-old father at the Zweibrücken public prosecutor’s office – for bodily harm and for offenses under the Violence Protection Act. This also includes the offense of domestic violence.

Fassel could not say whether this specifically involved violence against Ronja, who was now killed. The proceedings have not yet been concluded. “However, we requested the files for inspection from the Zweibrücken public prosecutor’s office on June 18, 2024.”

Regarding the parents’ residence status, the senior public prosecutor told FOCUS online: “The 39-year-old accused is in possession of a residence permit. The 34-year-old accused is in possession of a settlement permit. The victim was not born in Germany.”

According to the entries in the Central Register of Foreigners, the father Hassan M. entered the federal territory for the first time in 2016 and the accused Maryam M. entered the federal territory for the first time in 2015.

According to Alexander Fassel, the two accused were remanded in custody for manslaughter. “There is currently no strong suspicion of murder.”

The task of the law enforcement authorities is now to clarify the background of the crime, the motives, the personalities and the living conditions of those involved as best as possible. “Only on this basis will it be possible to decide in due course whether there are any signs of murder and whether there is a suspicion of murder.”

In view of the suspicion that the parents decided to kill their daughter because they did not agree with her lifestyle, it will be particularly important to examine “whether the murder criterion of ‘base motives’ is met,” said Fassel.

According to established case law, base motives exist when the motives for a killing are despicable and of the lowest level according to general moral standards. According to the daily newspaper “Rheinpfalz”, the father and the victim in particular apparently “had different values ​​about the new life far away from the Afghan homeland”. Acquaintances had declared that the daughter had brought “shame” on the family. In fact, it was mainly about “men’s things”.

After the incident, the father is said to have said that “the problem” had now been solved.