PARIS – A father’s decades-long mission to avenge his 15-year-old daughter’s death has finally reached its culmination.
Andre Bamberski’s 15-year-old daughter Kalinka died in 1982.
Bamberski suspected that Kalinka’s stepfather, Dieter Krombach, had given the girl a dangerous injection so he could rape her; the injection apparently caused her death.
A French court convicted Krombach in absentia; a German court, however, deemed that the case had insufficient evidence to prove his guilt, and refused to extradite Krombach.
Deciding to take action of his own, Bamberski hired two henchmen to bring Krombach, 79, from Germany to France for trial in 2009.
The AP reports that Krombach was “tied up and dumped near a French courthouse.”
Krombach is currently serving a 15-year prison sentence for “intentional violence that led to unintentional death.”
On Wednesday, Bamberski, 76, was convicted of the ordering a cross-border kidnapping. He was handed a one-year suspended prison sentence by court in eastern France.
Two other men were convicted of carrying out the kidnapping. Each was sentenced to one year in prison.
Related: Man On Trial For Kidnapping His Teenage Daughter's Rapist/Killer
Photo Sources: The Sydney Morning Herald, Canada
Yubisaki_Milk_Tea on January 3rd, 2018 at 21:08 UTC »
Had the opportunity to read up this case during my legal studies. It was incredibly interesting, and if people want to read up more about it, there's a pretty good article here:
https://magazine.atavist.com/the-kalinka-affair
To clear up some misunderstandings, the case definitely is not as simple as people are assuming. Doctor Krombach (daughter's killer) had sedated and raped multiple women through his career as a doctor. Many suspect he also used his position to eliminate any medical evidence that could be used against him. For example, the uterus of Bamberski's daughter was found containing a white substance, and taken to the lab for examination - specifically the hospital where the Krombach worked. In fact, Krombach even partook in Kalinka's autopsy - where incidentally nothing of note was identified despite fresh puncture marks on Kalinka's arms. Additionally, her uterus somehow vanished, and on the grounds of insufficient evidence, Krombach was exonerated by the German courts. It wouldn't take a genius to guess that some foul play must have been involved.
Regulators-MountUp on January 3rd, 2018 at 16:14 UTC »
TL;DR: The court in France tried the killer in absentia and convicted him. Killer was living in Germany, and German courts found insufficient evidence and refused to extradite. Father conducted DIY extradition. The two guys who actually kidnapped the killer also got 1 year sentences.
Edit: Important to note that the murder occurred in 1982, pre-EU. Extradition within EU is probably more straightforward these days.
Gemmabeta on January 3rd, 2018 at 16:07 UTC »
The father had a very particular set of skills acquired over a very long career.