Irina H.
born: 1983
shot dead: 2 September 2008
Residence: Düsseldorf
Origin: victim: CIS, perpetrator: Serbia-Montenegro
Children: a son of the perpetrator, in his early twenties
Perpetrator: Irina's ex-lover Drago Skrba, at the time of the crime 54 years old, in Germany since 1971, German passport
Is this murder an honor killing? A few things point to it.
For two years Irina, a business administration student, was in a relationship with a man more than twice her age who runs a dental laboratory in Düsseldorf. When she ends the relationship, he begins to stalk her (something that occurs in the run-up to many honor killings. A man does not accept a woman's sexual self-determination and begins to put enormous pressure on her by terrorizing her).
When the police are called to Irina's dorm three weeks before the crime, she states that her ex-lover beat and raped her several times.
In September 2008, Irina is doing an internship. One morning, Drago ambushes her at the entrance to the Düsseldorf consulting office and starts arguing with her. Then he draws his revolver and shoots. He then shoots himself, leaving behind a son (whom he has with his wife) a half-orphan. Irina ends up badly wounded in the hospital and dies there. On the same day, the rape investigation file arrives at the prosecutor's office.
The police find on Drago a gun possession card from the Dominican Republic, but it does not belong to the murder weapon. They say he was involved in gambling and fencing. However, so far all investigations have been closed because no evidence could be found.
An honor killing is a murder committed in the name of honor. This means: a woman has misbehaved sexually, for example, by wanting to live sexually self-determined lives. The man does not accept this and violently asserts his power over the woman. It is not necessary for him to explicitly mention honor as a motive for the crime. In the case of Drago S., the true motive can probably no longer be determined. But there is much that points to an honor killing, including the planning of the act and the public staging.
