Moshammer Murder Trial Begins

The man who has confessed to killing the flamboyant high-society designer, Rudolph Moshammer, went on trial on Wednesday in a Munich courtroom.

Herisch A., 25, stands accused of strangling Moshammer with a telephone cable in the designer's mansion. He said Moshammer had offered him 2,000 euros ($2,400) for sex, but then didn't want to pay.

The only "witness" to the crime was Moshammer's beloved lap dog, Daisy, who -- despite a ban on dogs -- will be allowed in the courthouse for the trial, officials told the tabloid Bild.

Moshammer's body was discovered on the morning of Jan. 14. DNA samples at the scene led police to Munich's call-boy scene, and Herisch A. Moshammer is reported to have been a regular on the scene, despite his oft-quoted statement that "anyone who pays for sex is ruined."

Herisch A. came to Germany in 2001 as an Iraqi refugee and worked as a part-time cook in Munich. In addition to murder, he has been accused of robbery -- a charge he denies. Prosecutors said that he was in financial difficulty because of an addiction to gambling.

Possible life sentence

Lawyers for Herisch A. said their client intends to give the court a detailed description of the events that unfolded on the night of Moshammer's murder. According to a report in Bild, the 25-year-old is remorseful, praying daily and reading the Koran in his prison cell. He faces possible lifelong imprisonment.

The trial, which is set to last for 10 days and will hear testimony from 42 witnesses, will also mark the end of Yorkshire terrier Daisy's public life, according to her new owner, Andreas Kaplan, who worked as Moshammer's chauffeur.

Following Moshammer's death, Daisy embarked on a career in show business with private German broadcaster RTL. Now, it seems Kaplan has other plans.

"I'm drawing a line under it all," Kaplan told RTL. "I'm going to retreat out of the public eye, and so will Daisy."

The trial's verdict is expected on Nov. 16, the same day as Herisch A.'s 26th birthday.