A suspect in German police custody following a stabbing rampage in the city of Solingen that killed three people and injured eight is a 26-year-old Syrian man, authorities said on Sunday as they looked into his possible links with Islamic State.
The suspect came from a home for refugees in Solingen that was searched on Saturday, North Rhine-Westphalia’s interior minister, Herbert Reul, said.
Der Spiegel magazine, citing unidentified security sources, said the suspected had moved to Germany late in 2022 and sought asylum.
He was seen getting dragged to his arraignment at the Federal Supreme Court (BGH) in Karlsruhe, Germany, today by federal police officers, who took him to the southwestern courthouse via helicopter.
The tragic incident, along with the militant group’s claim of responsibility, sparked concern among some politicians who urged enhanced security, tighter curbs on weapons, stiffer punishment for violent crimes, and limits to immigration.
The attack occurred during a festival on Friday evening in the Fronhof, a market square, where live bands were playing to celebrate Solingen’s 650-year history. Mourners have made a makeshift memorial near the scene.
The suspect (pictured, centre)Â was seen getting dragged to his arraignment at the Federal Supreme Court (BGH) in Karlsruhe, Germany, today by federal police officers
A sign that reads: ‘We just wanted to celebrate, but then the death came’ is placed next to flowers and candles
Forensic police inspect on early August 24, 2024 the area where at least three people were killed and several injured when a man attacked them with a knife on late August 23, 2024 in Solingen
The suspect turned himself in late on Saturday and admitted to the crime, Duesseldorf police and prosecutors said in a joint statement early on Sunday.
‘The involvement of this person is currently under intensive investigation,’ they said.
Friedrich Merz, a prominent politician who leads the opposition, centre-right CDU party, urged that the country stopped admitting further refugees from Syria and Afghanistan.
‘It’s enough!’ he said in a letter on his website.
German federal prosecutors have taken over the case and are investigating whether the suspect was a member of Islamic State, a spokesperson for the prosecutors said.
The group described the man who carried out the attack as a ‘soldier of the Islamic State’ in a statement on its Telegram account on Saturday.
An ambulance and police stand on August 24, 2024 near the scene where at least three people were killed and several injured
A placard reading ‘Why?’ among flowers and tributes placed on a sidewalk near the scene after a knife attack, in Solingen, Germany
Candles and flowers and the inscription “Why? You are not alone” are pictured on late August 24, 2024 near the area where three people were killed and several injured
Forensic police inspect on August 24, 2024 the scene where at least three people were killed and several injured when a man attacked them with a knife on late August 23, 2024 in Solingen
It did not provide evidence for this assertion and details of the suspect’s possible membership of the group were not immediately known.
Hendrik Wuest, premier of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia where Solingen is located, on Saturday described the attack as an act of terror.
Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) has said there have been around a dozen Islamist-motivated attacks since 2000. One of the biggest was in 2016, when a Tunisian drove a truck into a Christmas market in Berlin, killing 12 and injuring dozens.
‘The risk of jihadist-motivated acts of violence remains high. The Federal Republic of Germany remains a direct target of terrorist organizations,’ the BKA said in the report earlier this year.
