Man who killed two at Mercedes plant in Germany sentenced to life

STUTTGART: The man who opened fire and killed two people at a Mercedes-Benz factory in south-western Germany last May was sentenced to life in prison on Tuesday.

Two employees of an external service provider died when the Turkish citizen fired his gun at the sprawling Mercedes site in Sindelfingen, near the city of Stuttgart, during an early morning shift.

The two victims and the shooter worked for Rhenus, a logistics firm, on the factory premises.

The accused testified during the trial that he had felt bullied and humiliated by his co-workers. But the court was not convinced and found there was no evidence to support his claims.

The sentence by the Stuttgart Regional Court was in line with what prosecutors had demanded.

The defence argued the man was in a state of mental distress when he attacked his colleagues and that the act in which he fired his gun eight times had not been planned.

Tuesday's verdict is not yet final.