Spain: Convicted Official Continues to Receive Pension After Murder Convictions

A German man, born in 1975 in Saxony-Anhalt, who served as a civil servant since 2002 and retired early due to permanent disability in 2011, has had his pension claims unaffected by a Spanish court's guilty verdict for double murder.

In April 2019, the man lured his separated wife and their two sons, aged 10 and 7, to a remote cave on Tenerife. Tragically, the woman (age 39) and the elder son were killed, while the younger son, who was 7 at the time, managed to escape.

The German criminal court sentenced the man to life imprisonment for the murders and additional sentences of 23 and 16 years for attempted murder. The Spanish court's verdict was handed down in February 2022, and life sentences in Spain can be reviewed after 25 years.

Despite the heinous nature of the crimes, the man's pension claims remain unaffected. This is due to the fact that the Federal Employment Agency's pension deduction claim was unsuccessful because the court ruled that the conditions for such a deduction were not met in this case.

If the case had been tried before a German court, the pension would have been withdrawn for intentional crimes with a prison sentence of two years or more. However, the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig ruled that a pension revocation for the man requires a conviction by a German court.

The Federal Employment Agency sought the pension's withdrawal, arguing that the man's actions violated human rights and the free democratic basic order. However, the Leipzig court dismissed the disciplinary complaint.

The Senate clarified that the question was whether the convicted man had violated the free democratic basic order. They emphasised that the man's crimes, motivated by personal reasons, did not fall under violating the free democratic basic order.

The term "femicide" is not defined in German law. However, it's worth noting that the Spanish court did not classify the wife's murder as femicide.

The lawyer for the convicted murderer stated that his client had paid around 300,000 euros in damages to the surviving son and the woman's heirs. This settlement, while offering some form of closure, does not alter the pension situation.

This case serves as a reminder of the complexities involved in pension cases following criminal convictions, and the importance of adhering to legal procedures and guidelines to ensure fair and just outcomes.