More witnesses on the NSU’s brutal bank robberies.

Today the court heard further witnesses on the NSU’s bank robberies, this time concerning three robberies of credit unions in Chemnitz in the years 2004 and 2005. Their testimony again showed these crimes conforming to the by now well-known template, particularly as concerns the very brutal way in which Mundlos and Böhnhardt – by now armed with a pistol and a pumpgun – carried them out. In all cases, they threatened bank tellers by pointing their guns at them at very close distances, hit them on the head with their guns, destroyed bank interiors, in one case of them even showed a hand grenade and threatened to use it he was not given additional money.

Hardly surprising, therefore, that many of the bank tellers and customers are still suffering from visible psychological damage today – one customer reported that she had never set foot in another credit union since 2004, several tellers burst into tears in court as once-buried memories of the events resurfaced due their summons to appear and their questioning in court.

At the end of the day, the presiding judge announced that Carsten Schultze will have an opportunity to make an additional statement next Wednesday, 9 March 2016, and that Beate Zschäpe has by now told not only the German yellow press, but also the court that she will have additional answers to the court’s questions read out on 16 March 2016. The trial day next Thursday, 10 March 2016, was canceled.