Far-right suspect identified in 1970 Munich arson that killed 7 Holocaust survivors

MUNICH, Germany — German investigators said Thursday they had identified a far-right suspect who allegedly carried out a notorious 1970 arson attack on a Jewish center in Munich that killed seven Holocaust survivors.

The suspect — a German national who was 25 at the time of the attack, and died in 2020 — was identified after officials reopened the case last year when a witness came forward with new evidence, police and prosecutors in Munich said.

“The new investigations conducted after the reopening of the case strongly indicate that the suspect was the perpetrator,” they said in a joint statement.

But they added that a conclusive “legal clarification” was not possible as charges cannot be brought against a deceased person under German law.

The suspect belonged to the “right-wing milieu,” and witnesses described him as an antisemite with a “Hitler fixation,” police and prosecutors said.

While they did not name him, Der Spiegel magazine partially identified him as “Bernd V.”

The attack on February 13, 1970, was one of the worst attacks targeting the Jewish community in postwar Germany.

A fire was started using gasoline on the wooden stairwell of the center, which served as a retirement home and guesthouse for the community, and it quickly spread, cutting off the only access to the premises.

Seven Jewish residents died, and 15 people were wounded, four of them seriously.