At least 36 people, including children, were injured when a vehicle deliberately drove into a Verdi trade union demonstration in Munich’s city center yesterday. A 24-year-old Afghan man was arrested at the scene and is believed to have shouted “Allahu akbar” after being taken into custody, according to reports. The man, who arrived in Germany as an unaccompanied minor in 2016, had his asylum application rejected in 2017, but later received a first residence permit and later an extended residence permit in 2021, making him not subject to deportation at the time of the attack.
In a press conference, the Munich State Prosecutor’s Office reported that two of the injured, including a child, are in a critical condition, eight people are seriously injured and six have moderate injuries, with the remaining victims suffering from minor injuries.
The suspect allegedly refused to give up and had to be forcibly removed from the vehicle by police, who had to shoot at the car to stop it, but the suspect was not hit, according to the police. The investigation is being led by a special commission of 140 officers, with the investigation of the suspect’s phone showing a majority of Dari, the standard variety of the Persian language in Afghanistan, in his messages and social media posts.
The suspect had sent a message to his family the day before the attack, saying “Maybe I won’t be here tomorrow.” At the press conference, it was also revealed that the man had worked as a sales detective and had no prior convictions, with a case of benefit fraud being dropped. He had sent several posts with religious content on his social media accounts, according to reports.
The lead prosecutor emphasized that, as of now, there is no indication of the suspect being a member of an Islamic organization, but the investigation is ongoing. The prosecutor also stated that there is no indication of the suspect having any psychological issues that could have contributed to the attack and therefore, a request for a psychiatric evaluation will not be made. The prosecutor has now requested an arrest warrant for the suspect on charges of attempted murder in 36 cases, with a judge to decide on the request in the coming days.