Peggy's mother lived in uncertainty for 15 years. She is now suing the man who confessed in 2018. However, he now denies everything.
Hof – What happened to little Peggy (†9)? This question preoccupied investigators for more than twenty years before they closed the file in 2022. Her mother's agonizing ignorance still haunts her. There was no trace of her child for 15 years after the girl didn't come home from school one day. Then, years later, mushroom pickers found her remains in a forest about 15 kilometers away.
“It made me sick not knowing what happened to my child for 15 years, being slandered and accused,” her mother told the
Bild newspaper
on the day of the civil trial against one of the former main suspects.
Ignorance made her sick: Peggy's mother is demanding 75,000 euros in compensation
Peggy's mother is demanding 75,000 euros in grief compensation from him; the decision before the Hof regional court was postponed on Thursday (April 18). In the courtroom she met the man for the first time who confessed in 2018 to having taken her daughter into the forest. He later withdrew his confession and was ultimately released from custody.
“It was unbearable for me to sit in the same room with him,” said the plaintiff in an interview with the tabloid. She accuses the defendant of preventing her from mourning her daughter by leaving her in ignorance for 15 years. She was also subjected to “harassment” against her person. As a result, she developed a psychological impairment. She is demanding 5,000 euros in compensation for each of these 15 years.
Suspect gave confession and then withdrew it – “Was coerced”
The person she is talking to assures that she has nothing to do with her daughter's case. In court, he rejected the allegations again - as he did after his alleged confession. He made the statements under pressure, but they were untrue. “I was really forced to tell a story,” he tells
Bild
. His lawyer requested that the lawsuit be dismissed as unfounded.
The chamber made no decision for the time being. An announcement date has been set for May 22nd. Until then, the chamber will decide whether further evidence is necessary or whether a decision will be announced directly.
The fate of little Maddie McCann is still unclear. On May 3rd, 17 years ago, she disappeared from a holiday resort in Portugal. A German is linked to her disappearance. The main suspect currently has to answer in another case. (rku with dpa)