After being sentenced to three years in prison for throwing a firecracker that injured a dozen people at the Augsburg-Hoffenheim Bundesliga game, the main defendant has filed an appeal. According to the Augsburg Regional Court on Tuesday, the 28-year-old has applied for an appeal to the Federal Court of Justice.
However, three of the man’s acquaintances, who were sentenced to suspended sentences for aiding and abetting, accepted the verdict. The firecracker thrower and his helpers were convicted last week because the four Hoffenheim fans were responsible for the explosion of a high-yield firecracker that was not registered in Germany in the Augsburg football arena.
The game between FC Augsburg and TSG 1899 Hoffenheim (1:1) was interrupted for several minutes on November 11, 2023. According to the verdict, twelve people, including several children, were injured, mainly suffering hearing damage.
The 28-year-old admitted to lighting and throwing the firecracker. He also apologized to those injured. His defense attorney had requested a two-year prison sentence, which should be suspended. However, the court considered a prison sentence to be appropriate for causing an explosive explosion and dangerous bodily harm; the firecracker thrower has also been in custody since the crime.
The presiding judge emphasized that the defendant had put 26,000 people in fear of terrorism in the Augsburg stadium with a massive explosive explosion. A police officer who has been accompanying Hoffenheim games for many years also stated as a witness in court that he initially thought it was a terrorist attack because of the unusually loud explosion.