American Troy Bohling is sentenced to life for rape and murder of fellow US tourist, 21, and for pushing her friend 22, off a cliff in brutal attack near Germany's 'Cinderella' castle

The US tourist who raped and murdered a fellow American in Germany in 2023 after pushing her friend from a cliff was sentenced today to life in prison after a short trial. 

Troy Bohling, 31, from Lincoln Park, Michigan, a Detroit suburb, killed and raped Kelsey Chang, 22, and injured her friend Eva Liu, 21, near the Neuschwanstein Castle in Schwangau, one of the most famous tourist destinations in the country. 

The conviction can be appealed, and Bohling can apply to serve his sentence in the US, though his lawyer said he had advised the defendant not to do so, since conditions of detention in Germany were better. 

The killer befriended the two women near the Maria Bridge, which offers a picture-postcard view of the fairytale castle in Bavaria, and was used by Disney as the model for the castle in both Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty.

He then lured them away from the public path with the promise of an even better vantage point. There, in the rugged landscape near the castle, he throttled and raped Liu, and threw Chang down a 100-metre ravine when she rushed to help her friend. The elder of the pair survived with severe injuries, after being caught on a tree branch.

Pictured: Troy Bohling and his sister. Bohling admitted to the charges during the start of his trial, the German news agency dpa reported

Bohling has been charged with the murder of 21-year-old Eva Liu (left). He is also charged with the attempted murder of her 22-year-old friend Kelsey Chang (right)

The attack happened on June 14 last year near the Marienbruecke, a bridge over a gorge close to the castle that offers a view of Neuschwanstein castle

Liu was also tossed over the ledge after Bohling raped her. She died in hospital several hours later. The court found that the strangling alone would have been fatal. 

At one point the man used his phone, which prosecutors found full of violent pornography, to film himself strangling her with his belt. 

'He used her as an object and threw her over the ledge like an object he no longer needed,' said the prosecutor while summing up the case against Bohling.

Bohling the two female tourists, Eva Liu and Kelsey Chang, aged 21 and 22, by chance on a hiking path and lured them off the trail

The judge at the court in Kempten, southern Germany, sentenced the man to life imprisonment, noting that the crime was one of 'particular gravity' - a finding that means the perpetrator will not receive automatic parole after 15 years as is the case for non-aggravated murder.

The man did not contest the charge of murdering the 21-year-old, but did seek a finding that the murder was not aggravated.

Neuschwanstein Castle, about 65 miles southwest of Munich, is one of the most popular destinations in Europe, attracting some 1.4 million visitors a year.

Authorities say the women didn't know the man before they met near Neuschwanstein. The suspect was arrested shortly after the attack. 

Liu, from Naperville, Illinois and Chang, from Bloomington, Illinois, were both recent graduates of the University of Illinois. 

When mountain rescue workers found the two women, Chang was injured but able to talk. Her friend described her as 'gasping' after the fall.

The rape victim was seriously injured and taken by helicopter to hospital, where she died later that night as a result of her injuries.

Built in the 19th century by King Lugwig II, Neuschwanstein castle is one of the most visited sites in Germany, attracting over a million visitors a year

Other tourists witnessed the assault and later filmed Bohling as he was led away in handcuffs by police.

Bohling photographed and filmed key scenes of the crime, German daily Bild reports.

The rescue operation and his subsequent arrest took place in front of hundreds of tourists, according to the publication.

Bohling lived with his brother Trevor in a single-story house about 20 minutes from Detroit.

Neighbors described him as 'quiet' and not very friendly and said the brothers were often away for long periods of time.

They assumed the pair worked in oil fields.

Bohling attended Allen Park High School near Detroit with former classmates describing him as rather shy and inconspicuous boy that played in the school band and had a girlfriend.

Another person who only knew him briefly says that the alleged killer spent a lot of time playing the role-playing game 'Dungeons and Dragons' in the library in his hometown of Allen Park.

A former friend of the alleged killer, who he had spent several summers in a camp with, said he was 'introverted, shy, quiet and a little peculiar' but ultimately friendly.

He said doing something like the attack in Germany would be unlike 'the Troy he knew ten years ago.'

Court records show that in 2016 he faced a charge of embezzlement, but there was no prosecution and the matter was dropped.