Man arrested in Germany for cutting down LGBT flag outside Catholic church
Mannheim’s Old Town Hall and St. Sebastian’s Church, right, on the city’s market square. Photo: Wikimedia Commons
German police have arrested a 58-year-old Mannheim resident on suspicion of property damage after he allegedly cut down a flagpole bearing an LGBT flag outside the Catholic parish of St. Sebastian, Catholic News Agency reports.
The incident occurred at around 6:45 p.m. local time on July 13. Witnesses said the man used a saw to cut through the metal flagpole, causing it to fall onto the market square, before leaving the scene. The rainbow flag had been raised by the parish priest, Fr. Lukas Glocker, to mark the local LGBT pride event, Monnem Pride.
Glocker said the flag symbolized respect for every person “regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, origin, religion, appearance, or skin color.” Following the incident, the priest filed a police complaint.
A specialized unit of the Heidelberg Criminal Police Department investigated the incident as a case of property damage. Authorities announced on Thursday that the 58-year-old Mannheim suspect had been arrested.
As the UOJ previously reported, LGBT Catholics marched through Rome carrying a rainbow-colored cross.
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