Poisoned pizza

A German husband who tried seven times to kill his wife by putting poison in frozen pizza has been brought to trial.

According to dpa and other foreign media on the 23rd local time, the Bamberg District Court in southern Germany began the trial of a 56-year-old man, identified as A, who was indicted on charges of attempted murder and causing grievous bodily harm. According to the indictment, from August 2023 to December last year, A is accused of attempting to kill his same-age wife by putting poisonous plants containing highly toxic substances such as aconitine into frozen pizza.

A, promised a future and children to another woman with whom the relationship began online in 2022. In the summer of 2023, he reportedly decided to kill his wife for a “new life.” Accordingly, A searched on Google for “poison lethal to humans” and “detectability of aconitine poisoning,” among other terms, and then ordered several types of poisonous plants to his workplace.

A attempted poisoning seven times, but the wife fortunately survived. However, she had to be hospitalized each time and had a pacemaker implanted due to symptoms of poisoning. During A’s final attempt at the end of last year, even their son in his 20s ate the poisonous-plant pizza and nearly lost his life. There was also testimony from a paramedic that when the wife and son were being taken to the hospital, A “watched the situation without any particular tension.”

After the crime, A went on a trip to France with his mistress and was arrested at the destination. In court that day, a representative for the wife said, “The victim is still maintaining a relationship with her husband,” and added, “She does not want her husband to receive a life sentence and be locked up in prison.