Overview
- A fire set in the wooden stairwell of the Jewish community building on Reichenbachstrasse on 13 February 1970 killed seven Holocaust survivors and wounded about 15 people.
- The investigation was reopened in April 2025 after a witness came forward with information she had heard from a relative and additional relatives later corroborated parts of that account.
- Prosecutors say evidence now points clearly to a man who was about 25 in 1970 and who had links to Munich’s far‑right scene and prior explosives‑related incidents.
- Authorities closed the criminal file because the identified suspect died in 2020 and German law prevents prosecuting a deceased person, and investigators said they found no proof of accomplices though they could not rule out their involvement with absolute certainty.
- The case underlines the symbolic gravity of attacks on Holocaust survivors, shows how archival and retrospective testimony shape cold‑case probes, and may prompt further historical research and community calls for formal acknowledgement even without a trial.