German man convicted for 1994 rape and murder of U.S. tourist

A German court on Friday sentenced an 81-year-old man to life in jail for the 1994 rape and murder of an American tourist, a conviction made possible by advances in DNA technology.

Amy Lopez, 24, was found dead near the historic Ehrenbreitstein Fortress, located on the Rhine river in the western city of Koblenz.

Her body was discovered by children and had stab wounds, severe head injuries and injuries consistent with strangling.

“The victim was strangled, struck on the head with a stone, and stabbed multiple times, ultimately resulting in his death,” the Koblenz Public Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement earlier this year.

Police were initially unable to identify the perpetrator but in February this year, three decades after the murder, announced they had arrested a suspect, named only as Hans S., in a retirement home.

His DNA had been on file since his conviction in 1999 of attempting to rape a 16-year-old girl.

The genetic data had later been deleted but police obtained a new saliva sample from the suspect which matched a DNA trace found on Lopez’s clothing, prosecutors said at the time.

Koblenz’s regional court found Hans S. guilty of rape and murder, finding he had led Lopez on a secluded path under the pretext of showing her the way to a youth hostel.

It said the circumstances of the killing meant he bore a “particular gravity of guilt,” which will make it harder for him to be considered for early release.

The court found that Hans S. had been “looking for a victim to rape” and that Lopez, who was visiting from Texas, “was tragically in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

Lopez’s family were co-plaintiffs in the case.

The cold case remained unsolved for decades until investigators re-examined Lopez’s clothing and about 1,600 samples, the prosecutor’s office said. In 2024, 30 years after Lopez was found dead, police offered a 2,500 euro reward for information leading to an arrest after a male DNA trace was discovered.

More tips also came in after the case was featured on “Aktenzeichen XY,” a true crime program, according to the prosecutor’s office.