Eleven Year Jail Term for Bus Hijacker

More than a year after he robbed a bank and hijacked a Berlin city bus, holding the driver and passengers hostage, Dieter Wurm has been sentenced to eleven years in prison. Wurm hijacked the double-decker public transit bus in April 2003 after having robbed a Berlin bank for €6,000 ($7,300). He managed to disarm a policewoman who had boarded the bus and led police on a 30 kilometer chase through city streets. A special forces unit was eventually able to capture Wurm and free the hostages unharmed. Wurm, 48, was released from a 17-year prison term in 2000. At the time, he was a model prisoner and thought to have been successfully resocialized. Wurm told the court the loss of his job, money problems and issues in a personal relationship had driven him to commit the crime.