US tourist confesses to rape, murder of recent college grad near famous German castle
An American man confessed Monday to the cold-blooded rape and murder of another US tourist in Germany — whom he shoved to her death down a 165-foot ravine near a famous fairy-tale castle.
The suspect, previously identified as 31-year-old Troy Bohling from Michigan, met two female tourists who were also from America on June 14 at a hiking trail near the Mariensbruecke Bridge, which offers a world-famous view of the famed Neuschwanstein Castle.
He lured the women — 21-year-old Eva Liu and 22-year-old Kelsey Chang — onto a trail featuring a “romantic” overlook of the 19th-century fairy-tale palace sitting atop a hill in Bavaria.
He then allegedly pushed Liu to the ground and tried to strip her naked while Chang attempted to intervene.
Prosecutors said Bohling then pushed Chang down a 165-foot ravine. The 22-year-old suffered a head injury from the assault but ultimately survived.
The brute went on to allegedly choke Liu until she was unconscious and rape her, before also shoving her down the same steep slope.
Liu, a recent college graduate from Naperville, Illinois, was airlifted by helicopter to a hospital, where she died from her injuries.
Bohling was charged with murder, rape with fatal consequences, attempted murder and possession of child pornography. Murder charges carry a maximum sentence of life in prison in Germany.
When prosecutors confiscated Bohling’s laptop and cellphones, they discovered child pornography.
The Michigan native admitted to the charges during his trial in Kempten, Germany, on Monday.
“The defendant has committed an unfathomable crime,” defense lawyer Philip Mueller said, according to the German news agency dpa.
Bohling, who used a red book to shield his face from cameras, confirmed his lawyer’s statement was correct but did not take any questions.
Bohling and the victims did not know each other before the assault, and Bohling was arrested shortly after the attack, prosecutors said.
An American tourist who captured video of cops arresting Bohling said he was “stunned” that one of the victims survived the massive fall.
“I’m honestly absolutely stunned someone is still alive from this. It is like falling from the top of an absolute cliff,” witness Eric Abneri said at the time of the arrest.
Abneri described it as “a very, very difficult rescue because of those cliffs and because the helicopter came mere feet above the tree line at the top of the hill.”
A verdict in the case is expected to be announced by mid-March at the earliest.
With Post wires
