Arson Attack on Jewish Retirement Home in Munich Apparently Solved After 56 Years
Munich, August 20 – More than 56 years after an arson attack on a Jewish retirement home in Munich, the public prosecutor’s office is convinced that the crime was committed by a right-wing extremist individual. The evidence strongly suggests that a man who has since passed away set the fire, the authority announced.
The building of the Israelite Cultural Community of Munich and Upper Bavaria was set on fire with a gasoline mixture on the evening of February 13, 1970. The building housed, among other things, the community’s retirement home. Seven residents, all Holocaust survivors, were killed, and 15 were injured.
New Witness Information Leads to Reopening of Case
For many years, the perpetrator could not be identified. In 2017, the Federal Prosecutor General’s Office closed the proceedings. However, after new information from the public, the Munich Public Prosecutor General’s Office reopened the investigation in April 2025.
A witness provided credible information about the suspect, according to the authority. The woman stated that a relative had close contact with the suspect. After the death of this relative, the woman contacted the investigators. The Public Prosecutor General’s Office and the police state security evaluated archived files and interviewed witnesses. They concluded that there were “substantiated reasons for the suspect’s culpability.”
The then 25-year-old German was known as a right-wing extremist and anti-Semite. On the evening of the crime, he reportedly said near the retirement home that “the Jews had everything” and that he wanted to “burn them.” Approximately 15 minutes later, the building was on fire.
Suspect Died in 2020, Case Cannot Be Legally Concluded
The suspicion was solidified by investigations into the alleged perpetrator’s environment. Witnesses stated that he listened to Adolf Hitler’s speeches on records and practiced shooting at Obersalzberg. A former classmate described the suspect’s “enmity towards Jews as formative,” according to the Public Prosecutor General’s Office. The perpetrator profile created by the operational case analysis also matched the suspect, the investigators explained.
However, it is impossible to legally conclude the case because the suspect died in 2020, and deceased persons cannot be prosecuted. It has also not been conclusively clarified whether the suspect acted alone or in a group. However, there are no substantiated indications that others were involved in the crime. The investigation has been closed.
The incident highlights the ongoing issue of antisemitism. According to the annual RIAS report, the number of antisemitic incidents remains high, with 8,725 antisemitic incidents recorded in 2025. This translates to 24 antisemitic incidents per day in Germany.
Jewish communities in Germany continue to face threats, hatred, and vandalism, and attacks on memorials demonstrate the visible presence of antisemitism.
Source: https://www.tagesschau.de/inland/gesellschaft/anschlag-muenchen-1970-100.html
