Face mask killing sparks radicalization fears in Germany

A man acting “out of anger” fatally shot a gas station clerk who asked him to wear a mask. Public figures have pointed to Germany’s Querdenken movement, warning of possible radicalization among coronavirus skeptics.

Senior lawmakers in Germany expressed fears over the radicalization among people who oppose coronavirus restrictions following the killing of a gas station employee.

The 20-year-old clerk was killed in the western town of Idar-Oberstein on Saturday for asking a customer to wear a face mask. Authorities only released details surrounding the murder on Monday, saying that a German national has been arrested and was being held on suspicion of murder.

Trier police: Man acted ‘out of anger’

Trier police said the 49-year-old man told officers he had acted “out of anger” after being refused service for not wearing a mask while trying to buy beer.

“He further stated during interrogation that he rejected the measures against the coronavirus,” the police department said in a statement.

According to police, the suspect left the gas station after the dispute but then returned 30 minutes later wearing a mask, before shooting the worker with a gun he did not have a license for.

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