Koblenz court: Defendant confesses to 1994 murder of US tourist

An 81-year-old man has confessed to the 1994 murder and sexual assault of Amy Lopez, a 24-year-old American tourist, during her trip to Koblenz, Germany. The trial began at the Koblenz District Court, drawing significant public interest.

According to prosecutors, the defendant lured Lopez to a room in the Ehrenbreitstein Fortress under false pretenses. He is accused of binding her with handcuffs, sexually assaulting her, and killing her with multiple stab wounds, as well as strangling her and striking her with a stone. The defendant's lawyer stated that the accused fully admits to the crime, though he reportedly has gaps in his memory regarding the specific sequence of events.

The case has remained a significant local matter for decades. The defendant, who was 49 at the time of the crime, had previously been convicted of another attempted rape in 1999, which allowed his DNA to be stored in police databases.