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“If I meet you alone, I will kill you”Anti-gay attack in the middle of the park! FDP politician and his partner brutally attacked
Helmut Metzner and his partner were victims of an anti-gay attack.
picture alliance / XAMAX | XAMAX
“Nobody helped during the crime.”
On Thursday (May 7th), FDP politician Helmut Metzner (57) and his partner walked through their neighborhood, the area in which they have lived “for a long time and with pleasure”. But the peaceful walk comes to an abrupt end when another passer-by insults the couple homophobically and physically attacks them. The state security agency is now even investigating the matter.
Helmut Metzner and his partner were pushed to the ground and trampled on
It is shortly after 7 p.m. on Donnerstab evening when Helmut Metzner is out and about with his partner in Schustehruspark in Berlin-Charlottenburg. According to a report from the Berlin police, the gay couple was talking to a cyclist when an unknown man came along with his dog. The man is said to have insulted the men homophobically and also made inflammatory statements.
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A short time later, Helmut Metzner made the crime public on his Facebook profile. He writes that he and his partner were initially insulted as “faggots”. “When I asked whether the man of Central European appearance would repeat his statement in the presence of the police, he explained: 'This is freedom of expression.'”
Metzner announced that he would call the police. “Then he ran towards me and pushed me to the ground. He then attacked my partner, brought him to the ground and kicked him.” The attacker then threatened Metzner's partner with the words “If I meet you alone, I will kill you.” Metzner managed to photograph the attacker and call the police.
“Despite cries for help, no one from the neighborhood came”
The perpetrator initially managed to escape. But that same evening, “a person from our neighborhood” was able to identify the person. “We now know the name and address of the perpetrator,” wrote Helmut Metzner in another Facebook post on Friday (May 8th). The police state security of the State Criminal Police Office has now taken over the investigation into the homophobic attack, according to a report from the Berlin police.
During the crime, however, Helmut Metzner and his partner were completely on their own. “Despite cries for help, no one from the neighborhood came. The residents and passers-by, who must have witnessed what was happening, did not move or quickly left“.
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Helmut Metzner on RTL: “Don’t let fear paralyze me in my daily activities”
Two days after the attack in the park, Helmut Metzner and his partner were “doing well given the circumstances,” as the FDP politician said when asked by RTL. But the incident made him “thoughtful”. “It took place in our immediate living environment. We have been living in Charlottenburg for a long time and enjoy it,” explains Metzner.
In his Instagram post, the politician encourages people to show moral courage: “Pay attention to self-protection, promote attention (make a noise), ask those present for help, call the police, show help and solidarity as a witness, document the crime.”
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“For an appropriate conviction” of his attacker, it is important “that people who saw the crime report to the police and contribute their perception of the incident.” “The rule of law is defensible. It will remain so if we strengthen it through the self-confident use of our rights, but also responsible action,” Metzner is certain.
Even though the incident is “still in the couple’s bones,” as Metzner writes on Facebook, he will not let fear “paralyze me in my daily activities.”
Source used: Berlin police, Facebook/Helmut Metznerown RTL research
