Leipzig - A 19-year-old confessed to the rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl in Leipzig on Monday, at the start of his trial almost exactly a year after the girl - called Michelle - was raped, murdered and dumped in a pond.

As the trial opened the teenager's lawyer, Malte Heise, read out a statement on his behalf, confirming all accusations except for the claim that he had intended from the start to kill Michelle, a court spokesman said.

"The first thing I want to do is apologize to Michelle's family, because I have caused them such great pain," the defendant said. The girl's parents were absent from the trial, at which they were represented by a lawyer.

The teenager had allegedly coaxed the girl into his apartment where he strangled her, poured alcohol down her throat and raped her. He then allegedly killed the girl and dumped her body in a pond, to cover up the crime.

Prosecution lawyer Klaus-Dieter Mueller said the 19-year-old had planned the crime far in advance. He knew Michelle, who lived in his vicinity, and had allegedly ambushed her on her way home from daycare.

"The child knew the defendant and followed him without suspicion into the apartment," Mueller said, adding that it was only when he started using adhesive tape that she tried to escape.

The 19-year-old turned himself in to the police after a six-month manhunt, when he was asked to submit to a voluntary DNA test.

The defendant's lawyer said the 19-year-old had a considerable lack of maturity, and expected him to be tried as a juvenile offender. In this case, the maximum sentence for murder would be ten years. (dpa)