Tugce's friend testifies on attack

Proceedings against the man accused in connection with the death of 23-year-old Tugce Albayrak continued for a second day at a court in the city of Darmstadt. A witness in the case, one of Tugce's friends, recounted the events from her point of view.

Sanel M. was 'aggressive'

The accused, Sanel M., was very aggressive, the witness said. She said the 18-year-old man and his friends had been insulting a group of girls with Tugce right from the moment they entered a fast food restaurant in Offenbach. She said the boy said things like "b****, what's your price," and almost all of the guests at the restaurant laughed at the young women's expense.

She said the girls sat down at a table and around the same time, loud noises of people fighting in the toilet could be heard. A 20-year-old eyewitness had said earlier that Tugce had seen two very young women there, who were believed to be drunk. Tugce ran towards the toilet, followed by a friend and the witness.They found Sanel M. and his two friends standing at the entrance of the women's restroom.

She said Tugce asked them to leave, upon which Sanel M. came closer and swore at her. At this point, two men came out of the men's restroom, pulled the accused into a headlock and took him away. According to the witness, as he was taken away, Sanel M. said "just you wait and see, you b****, what you're going to get."

The fatal blow

She said the group of women finished their dinner and went to the parking lot to smoke. Sanel M. and his friends followed them and began swearing heavily. The women tried to defend themselves and "the argument escalated," Tugce's friend and witness said. The men finally moved towards their cars and the women wanted to leave too, but Sanel M. came back and hit Tugce. His friend hit another woman from Tugce's group.

Another witness said Sanel used his left hand to deliver a flat blow on Tugce's temple. "Her eyes closed and she fell down," the witness said. Tugce died around two weeks later, on November 28, her 23rd birthday, after her parents decided to take her off life support.

The 18-year-old Sanel M. has been accused of causing grievous bodily harm leading to death. If sentenced under juvenile law, he could face anywhere between six months and 10 years in prison. If judges use standard laws for adults, then he could face at least three years in jail.

mg/pfd (dpa, epd)