German Authorities Identify Suspect in 1970 Munich Arson Killing Seven Holocaust Survivors

German prosecutors announced on Thursday that they have identified the suspect responsible for a 1970 antisemitic arson attack in Munich, which killed seven elderly Holocaust survivors. The suspect was a 25-year-old far-right extremist at the time of the attack and died in 2020. His name has not been released. The deadly fire broke out on February 13, 1970, at a building housing the Jewish community and a nursing home.

For many years, investigations focused on left-wing extremists and radical Islamists, partly due to a related attack by Palestinians on Israeli travelers at Munich airport three days earlier, which severely injured actress Hanna Maron. New investigations revealed the suspect had an obsession with Hitler and used gasoline to set the fire. Earlier reports indicated that the suspect, identified as Brand W., and an accomplice attempted to rob a jewelry store near the Jewish community building the night before the fire. After the failed robbery, Brand W. reportedly cursed Jews and threatened to burn down the community center.

The renewed investigation connected eyewitness testimony placing Brand W. near the scene during the fire and a prison cellmate’s claim that Brand W. admitted responsibility. Brand W. had served prison time in 1971 for robbery but authorities did not act on the cellmate’s testimony at the time. Six victims died in the fire, and a seventh died after jumping from a window. Survivors described the horror, with one recalling surviving multiple concentration camps and losing an eye, expressing shock at experiencing such terror again in Germany decades later.