German police probe bank clients who ignored collapsed man


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BERLIN (AP) — German police say they're investigating several people who ignored an elderly man who had collapsed in a bank branch, and eventually died, for failing to help him.

Police in the western city of Essen said Friday that the 82-year-old collapsed as he used a banking terminal on a public holiday earlier this month. They said surveillance camera footage showed four people ignoring the man as he lay on the floor, walking past or over him.

Only after about 20 minutes did another customer call emergency services. The man was taken to a hospital but didn't regain consciousness and died a few days later.

Under German law, people who can but fail to provide help in an emergency can be punished with a fine or up to a year in prison.

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