BERLIN (AP) — A German man was convicted of murder on Tuesday and sentenced to life in prison for shooting a young gas station clerk after a face mask controversy.
The murder in the western town of Idar-Oberstein on September 18 last year shocked the country. The 50-year-old defendant Bert was convicted by the state court in Kreuznach, German news agency dpa reported.
A man told officers he acted “out of anger” after he was refused service by a 20-year-old clerk for not wearing a mask when he tried to buy beer at a gas station, officials said. One of the measures in place in Germany at the time to stop the spread of -19 was compulsory wearing of masks in stores.
Police said the suspect, a German named Mario N. in local media, left the gas station after the conflict but returned 30 minutes later and shot a clerk in the head.
He initially fled the scene but turned himself in to police after a large-scale search was launched.
The suspect was also convicted of illegal possession of a weapon as he did not have a license for the gun used in the killing.
