Sieglinde Hofmann
Encyclopedia
Sieglinde Hofmann was a militant and member of both the Socialist Patients' Collective
and the Red Army Faction
.
girls' school and went on to train to become a nurse and then a social worker. She was believed to have joined the Red Army Faction (as part of their second generation) in 1976 after having first joined the SPK and was suspected of involvement in the killing of banker Jürgen Ponto
. It is now known that it was actually the terrorists Susanne Albrecht
, Brigitte Mohnhaupt
and Christian Klar
who took part in the Ponto assassination.
Hofmann was among the group of terrorists who took part in the kidnapping of Hanns-Martin Schleyer. She walked along the road that Schleyer's convoy was passing pushing a pram laden with guns. She pushed the pram out into the middle of the street to stop the convoy from driving past, and as the cars slowed to a stop, she, along with a group of RAF terrorists, ambushed the cars, murdering Schleyer's driver, his bodyguard and two police officers.
Hofmann, along with Brigitte Mohnhaupt
, Peter-Jürgen Boock
and Rolf Wagner was arrested on 11 May 1978 in Yugoslavia
, but they were all freed and flown to an undisclosed country of their choice. A lot of them went immediately back underground
, including Hofmann. Two years later, however, in 1980, Hofmann was rearrested in Paris
(alongside Ingrid Barabass), following a raid on a RAF
safehouse.
.
On 26 September of the same year, Hofmann, then 50 years old, was found guilty of involvement in 5 cases of murder
, and 3 cases of attempted murder
by the Higher Regional Court in Stuttgart
, and was sentenced to life imprisonment
. Her crimes included her offences against Ponto, and other crimes such as a failed bomb attack
on NATO Commander
Alexander Meigs Haig, Jr. and the murder/kidnap of President of the German Employer's Association, Hanns Martin Schleyer
. She was however released from Prison on May 5, 1999.
Socialist Patients' Collective
The Socialist Patients' Collective was a patients' collective founded in Heidelberg in February 1970, by Wolfgang Huber. The kernel of the SPK's ideological program is summated in the slogan Turn Illness into a weapon, which remains actively practiced...
and the Red Army Faction
Red Army Faction
The radicalized were, like many in the New Left, influenced by:* Sociological developments, pressure within the educational system in and outside Europe and the U.S...
.
Biography
As a child Hofmann attended a CatholicCatholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
girls' school and went on to train to become a nurse and then a social worker. She was believed to have joined the Red Army Faction (as part of their second generation) in 1976 after having first joined the SPK and was suspected of involvement in the killing of banker Jürgen Ponto
Jürgen Ponto
Jürgen Ponto, was a German banker and chairman of the Dresdner Bank board of directors. Previously, he had worked as a lawyer...
. It is now known that it was actually the terrorists Susanne Albrecht
Susanne Albrecht
Susanne Albrecht is a former member of the Red Army Faction.-Early life:Albrecht was the daughter of a successful maritime lawyer, and spent her childhood living in a wealthy suburb of Hamburg. She did not fit in well in public school, and was later sent to a private school in Holzminden...
, Brigitte Mohnhaupt
Brigitte Mohnhaupt
Brigitte Margret Ida Mohnhaupt is a German militant associated with the second generation of the Red Army Faction members. She was also part of the Socialist Patients' Collective...
and Christian Klar
Christian Klar
Christian Klar was a leading member of the second generation Red Army Faction between the 1970s and 80s...
who took part in the Ponto assassination.
Hofmann was among the group of terrorists who took part in the kidnapping of Hanns-Martin Schleyer. She walked along the road that Schleyer's convoy was passing pushing a pram laden with guns. She pushed the pram out into the middle of the street to stop the convoy from driving past, and as the cars slowed to a stop, she, along with a group of RAF terrorists, ambushed the cars, murdering Schleyer's driver, his bodyguard and two police officers.
Hofmann, along with Brigitte Mohnhaupt
Brigitte Mohnhaupt
Brigitte Margret Ida Mohnhaupt is a German militant associated with the second generation of the Red Army Faction members. She was also part of the Socialist Patients' Collective...
, Peter-Jürgen Boock
Peter-Jürgen Boock
Peter-Jürgen Boock is a former member of the Red Army Faction.-Earlier life:After completing secondary school, Boock began training as a mechanic but soon quit. Claiming that his father was a staunch Nazi, Boock then left his parents’ home and travelled to the Netherlands...
and Rolf Wagner was arrested on 11 May 1978 in Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
, but they were all freed and flown to an undisclosed country of their choice. A lot of them went immediately back underground
Underground resistance
Underground resistance may refer to*Underground Resistance , a musical collective from Detroit, Michigan*Underground resistance during World War II, the inhabitants of various locales resisting the rule of the Nazis, the Empire of Japan, and Mussolini...
, including Hofmann. Two years later, however, in 1980, Hofmann was rearrested in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
(alongside Ingrid Barabass), following a raid on a RAF
Red Army Faction
The radicalized were, like many in the New Left, influenced by:* Sociological developments, pressure within the educational system in and outside Europe and the U.S...
safehouse.
Imprisonment
Although initially only charged with involvement in the murder of Ponto and condemned to serve fifteen years in prison, Hofmann was taken back into custody three days before the end of her sentence in August 1995 to be tried for other offences. The second trial was only possible after a judicial clarification in FranceFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
On 26 September of the same year, Hofmann, then 50 years old, was found guilty of involvement in 5 cases of murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
, and 3 cases of attempted murder
Attempted murder
Attempted murder is a crime in England and Wales and Northern Ireland.-Today:In English criminal law, attempted murder is the crime of more than merely preparing to commit unlawful killing and at the same time having a specific intention to cause the death of human being under the Queen's Peace...
by the Higher Regional Court in Stuttgart
Stuttgart
Stuttgart is the capital of the state of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. The sixth-largest city in Germany, Stuttgart has a population of 600,038 while the metropolitan area has a population of 5.3 million ....
, and was sentenced to life imprisonment
Life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is a sentence of imprisonment for a serious crime under which the convicted person is to remain in jail for the rest of his or her life...
. Her crimes included her offences against Ponto, and other crimes such as a failed bomb attack
Bomb
A bomb is any of a range of explosive weapons that only rely on the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy...
on NATO Commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
Alexander Meigs Haig, Jr. and the murder/kidnap of President of the German Employer's Association, Hanns Martin Schleyer
Hanns Martin Schleyer
Hanns-Martin Schleyer was an SS officer, a German business executive and employer and industry representative, serving as President of the two influential organizations Confederation of German Employers' Associations and Federation of German Industries...
. She was however released from Prison on May 5, 1999.