User:Dr Gangrene/sandbox9

The term Bommeleeër designates a so far unidentified group of persons, who from April 1985 to April 1986 committed a series of bomb attacks on infrastructure points and public buildings in Luxembourg.

Although the term "Bommeleeër" has come to be used in the media and by the public in general, investigators have assumed since July 1985 that it is a group of at least four persons.

After a long period of silence, the investigation saw new developments since 2004. On 25 November 2007, the Procureur Robert Biever revealed in a press conference, that two people, who at the time of the attacks were members of the Brigade mobile of the Gendarmerie, had been charged with attempted murder. Both individuals deny any involvement in the affair.

Attacks
The series of 20 incidents started with two attacks on an electric mast of Cegedel at Beidweiler, on 30 May and 2 June 1984. This pylon was part of the power supply to the long-wave transmitter of RTL.

This had been preceded by several thefts and burglaries, amongst others on carnival weekend in 1984 and 1985, in different quarries, where more than 400 kg of Luxite (explosive saltpetre) and detonators were stolen. These were later used in the attacks.

On 12 April 1985, there was an explosion in an uninhabited holiday home in Bourscheid, but this incident has not been conclusively linked with the other attacks.

The series continued with several more attacks in the coming months, on electricity pylons, gas pipes, telephone cables, radar station at Luxembourg airport, as well as the swimming pool on Kirchberg, EU institutions, the headquarters of the Luxemburger Wort, the office of the investigating judge, who was investigating the case, a police station, and the private home of a notary, and the home of Colonel Wagner, the recently retired head of the Gendarmerie.

The series of attacks did not directly cause any victims, although often it was more coincidence that this was the case. While gathering physical evidence, one engineer was injured in the hand. There were also five injuries when cars on the Esch motorway drove into the cables of the electric pylon that was attacked, and one soldier was killed in a car accident on the way to guard a potential target. The murder of a "hobby detective" was also seen as linked to the affair, although no conclusive evidence for this was found.

The material damage is estimated at over 25 million Euros.

For a long time, no demands or claims of responsibilty by the perpetrators were known. Only in 2004 did rumours arise, confirmed by Robert Biever in November 2007, that extortion demands were made: Cegedel was to pay $250.000, then $750.000, for the attacks to stop. There was also a failed attempt to pay this money to the perpetrators.

A reward of 12 million francs was promised to anyone, who made it possible to arrest the perpetrators.

Chronology

 * Electricity mast in Beidweiler
 * Electricity mast Beidweiler (bis)
 * 12 April 1985: Chalet Bourscheid
 * 27 April 1985: Cegedel Staffelstein
 * 7 May 1985: Cegedel Schlewenhof
 * 27 May 1985: Gendarmerie Verlorenkost
 * 29 May 1985: Cegedel Itzig
 * 23 June 1985: Gas works at Hollerich
 * 5 July 1985: Boobytrap in Blaschette
 * 5 July 1985: Casemates in Luxembourg city
 * 26 July 1985: Saint-Paul printers in Gasperich (Luxemburger Wort)
 * 29 August 1985: Police Glacis
 * 29 August 1985: Ponts & Chaussées Glacis
 * 30 September 1985: Piscine Olympique (Coque)
 * 20 October 1985: Palais de Justice
 * 9 November 1985: Findel
 * 30 November 1985: Cegedel Grünewald
 * 2 December 1985: Sommet Kirchberg
 * 17 February 1986: Notary Camille Hellinckx, in Cents
 * 25 March 1986: Colonel Wagner, Belair

Investigation
Despite having a special commission with up to 30 staff, the police investigation into the affair achieved no results for several years. Many possibilities as to the culprits' identity were considered, from people who had not paid their bills to Cegedel, to students (because the incidents usually took place on weekends), and the residents of particular areas, to possible connections with the Waldbillig affair, or with foreign terrorist organisations such as the German Rote Armee Fraktion or the Belgian Cellules Communistes Combattantes.

A lack of resources for the police investigation, as well as the fact that four investigating judges dealt with the case in a short period, meant that almost 20 years later there were no results.

Every now and again, the press carried speculation as to the possible identity of the perpetrators, and connections to other affairs. The criminologist Armand Mergen for example claimed in 1996 in an interview on RTL that the affair had been "solved, but not made public". Mentioned as possible suspects were Prince Jean, the brother of Grand-Duke Henri, or the former head of the Brigade Mobile, or the "secret services".

In 2014, Robert Biever, the chief prosecutor criticised that for years the secret services, whether intended or not, missed chances to follow leads and clear up important points, which were proving to be a stumbling point for the ongoing trial. Evidence and files which should have been handed to the judicial investigation, were held on to by the secret services. He criticised that Jos Steil was not questioned until 2014.

A former police officer testified in 2014 that large amounts of metal parts -- physical evidence from the bomb sites -- held by the police had been disposed of around 1988.

Early 2000s
In the early 2000s, the investigation which had never been suspended, was intensified. RTL Radio and Television ran special reports on the 20-year anniversaries of the attacks from April 2005 to February 2006. New details were also revealed to the public, new witnesses came forward, a few of whom declared that they had not been taken seriously or had not been contacted again when they wanted to make a witness statement.

One witness came forward in November 2005, stating that a few hours before an attack on the radar station at Findel airport, he had seen a "person from public life" whom he recognised in the area; when he had contacted the Sûreté, he had been pressured by them to not reveal the name of the person in public. The prime minister Jean-Claude Juncker then intervened, and allowed the witness to reveal the name to him, which he then in turn gave to the prosecutor, for it to be passed on to the investigating judge.

On 22 February 2006, the prosecution released a communiqué dealing with the witness' observations and showing that Prince Jean, the named individual in public life, had been able to present an alibi, namely that he had been on a hunt in France with other people who had confirmed this. DNA evidence was also taken, and the result was negative. The conclusion of the communiqué was: "Il résulte de ce qui précède que l'enquête effectuée permet de conclure que le Prince Jean de Luxembourg n'est pas impliqué dans les attentats à l'explosif d'une façon ou d'une autre".

This communiqué caused some controversy in the legal community. Especially the lawyer Gaston Vogel described this as a "Violatioun vum Principe de l'Egalite des citoyens devant la loi pénale".

2007 press conference
On 25 November 2007, on a Sunday morning, the Procureur d'Etat of the Parquet Luxembourg, Robert Biever, called an unannounced press conference. In this conference, he described at length the individual bomb attacks, and confirmed certain facts for the first time, for example that letters, including blackmail letters, by the perpetrators existed. But above all, he described the investigation, and its conclusions. Specifically, the fact that several indicators pointed towards the culprits being members of the state security forces, specifically the Brigade mobile.

Only people with a large amount of "insider knowledge" could have been able to plan and execute the series of attacks. The profile of the perpetrators also pointed to this: they were evidently not interested in the money that was demanded in the blackmail letters. Further indicators were deduced from the question Cui prodest - who benefits?. There was much evidence that the attacks were intended to demonstrate the vulnerable and powerless nature of the security forces. As the budget for the gendarmerie and police increased massively, after political and public pressure, one could see that as one of the motives, so that their material circumstances were improved. Investigations by the German Bundeskriminalamt and the FBI, carried out at the request of the public prosecutor, had supported this.

Furthermore, Robert Biever confirmed that two former members of the Brigade mobile had been arrested and interrogated the previous day. However, as there was no danger of them fleeing, they had been released again. There had already been previous investigations against the two individuals.

On 27 November 2007, the two suspects were named in the free newspaper Point24.

On 5 December 2007, Robert Biever testified to the Chamber commission on justice, that he had laid charges for attempted murder, due to the booby trap which was laid in July 1985 in Asselscheuer. He also reported on surveillance of Ben Geiben, the former head of the Brigade mobile, which had been carried out by the Gendarmerie and the secret services, without informing the investigating judge.

The two accused made a statement on 11 December through their lawyer, Gaston Vogel, which indicated that they denied the accusations against them.

Suspension of Reuland and Stebens
In a letter on 24 January 2008 to the Justice Minister Luc Frieden, the Procureur d'État Robert Biever uttered severe criticism of the breaches of criminal justice procedure in the investigation of someone who was at the time a suspect. He accused the Groupe d'Observation et de Recherche (GOR), which had been set up in connection with the Bommeleeër Affair, of conducting investigations in 1984 without informing the Procureur, as it was supposed to, which Biever described as "afin de rester poli on dira que c’est extraordinaire". The investigating judge was not informed of this until 2004.

The Justice Minister Frieden then, on 30 January 2008, announced in the Chamber, that Pierre Reuland, Director-General of the Police and previously head of the Brigade mobile de la Gendarmerie, and Guy Stebens, previously Commandant adjioint of the Brigade mobile and head of the GOR, had been suspended from their posts as Director-General and General-Secretary of the police respectively, "well déi noutwenneg Serenitéit vun der Policeaarbecht a Fro gestallt wier".

Stay-Behind
At a meeting In early 2006 the SREL informed Jean-Claude Juncker and Luc Frieden of a possible connection between the Stay-Behind network and the Bommeleeer affair. In 2013, Gérard Reuter, the former president of the Luxembourg Cour des Comptes, confirmed that the SREL suspected the Stay Behind network behind the attacks. Reuter went on to describe the CIA as the instigator of the incidents.

Trial
In February 2013, a trial started against two former members of the Brigade mobile, Marc Scheer and Jos Wilmes. There were 18 charges, including attempted murder, arson, and violating firearms laws. The trial took place in the 9th criminal chamber of the arrondissement of Luxembourg. The defendants were represented by Gaston Vogel and Lydie Lorang.

Civil parties were also represented at the trial, with Creos demanding damages of €260,000, Saint-Paul claiming €50,000, and FIndel airport demanding €1 million.

The defence presented a statement from German historian Andreas-Johann Kramer, whose deceased father Johannes Karl Kramer, was a member of the Bundesnachrichtendienst, the German intelligence service. He had also been the head of the German Stay-Behind network, and cooperated with Luxembourgish Stay-Behind agents. In the statement read out to the judges, Kramer claimed that Luxembourgish Stay-Behind agents were behind the Bommeleeer attacks. It was claimed that the attacks were exercises for future actions against enemy powers. Kramer also clamed that Charles Hoffmann, former head of the SREL, was in charge of disposing of any evidence.

Prince Jean testified as a witness in the trial. Rumours had arisen about his involvement in the attacks after the testimony of Albert Colbert, who claimed to have seen someone looking like Prince Jean around Findel airport shortly before one of the attacks. Prince Jean had been informed by the Grand Duke in the early 1990s about the rumours about him, and spoke with the prime minister Jean-Claude Juncker in 2005, to deny all accusations. He repeated this in his testimony during the trial, stating that he had been hunting in the south of Paris on 8 and 9 November, which Valery Giscard d'Estaing could confirm.

The court decided on 16 May 2013 that the defence was no longer allowed to ask about the implication of "Stay-Behind" agents in the Bommeleeer attacks. This was due to the confidential nature of the documents involved.

The former minister of Justice Luc Frieden testified in the trial on 27 June 2013.

On 1 July 2013, Guy Stebens and Pierre Reuland testified. Reuland had been the head of the Brigade mobile, and Scheer and Wilmes' superior, at the time of the attacks, and was later head of the police.

The prosecution saw as a key part of the affair the circumstances around the failed surveillance of former Brigade mobile head Ben Geiben, on 20 October 1985, the day of the attack on the Palais de Justice, as they could offer clues as to the identity of the perpetrators and those who were covering for them. Five witnesses during the trial stated that Reuland, as Geiben's successor, played a key role in the latter's surveillance; Reuland himself denied vehemently that he had been involved in this at all.

On 18 November 2013, Prosper Klein testified, who was the investigating judge for the affair from 1985 to 1991. Klein stated that witness testimony and evidence had been hidden, and the integrity of the investigators had been hampered. Klein deplored that nothing had been done on the political level to clear up the affair. He declared his belief that "powerful forces were at work" to cover up the attacks.

The former prime mininster Jean-Claude Juncker testified on 25 February 2014.