Police arrest man suspected of stabbing 2 in Erfurt
June 28, 2021
Two people sustained serious injuries when a knife-wielding assailant attacked them in public and then fled the scene in the German city of Erfurt, police have said.
The stabbings took place on Monday morning, just three days after a separate knife rampage in Würzburg. Erfurt police responded by launching a manhunt, deploying a helicopter and sniffer dogs in search for the assailant.
Eventually, the officers tracked down and detained the 32-year-old German suspect in his own apartment.
The police said the alleged assailant was also injured, but his injuries appeared to be self-inflicted. The authorities moved the suspect to a hospital.
According to the authorities, it was unlikely that the suspect knew his two victims. The two German nationals, ages 45 and 68, were also hospitalized but their lives were not in danger, officials said.
Police still unclear on motives for rampages in Erfurt, Würzburg
Police said the suspect in Monday's attack was a German national, identified as Johannes L., and had a history of mental issues and violent crimes. There was no indication that the stabbings were politically motivated.
German authorities were also still working to determine the motive for the Friday attack in Würzburg, which left three women dead and five more people seriously injured.
The suspect, a 24-year-old Somali man, had a history of mental health problems but was heard shouting "Allahu Akbar" (God is greatest in Arabic) during the rampage.
Investigators were looking into the possibility of him being motivated by Islamic fundamentalism, his mental problems, or both of those factors together.
On Monday, a spokesman for German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she decried the "horrific, vile murders," and described it as "an act of incomprehensible viciousness and brutality."
Correction from June 29, 2021: An earlier version of this article did not mention that the suspect was of German nationality. The piece has been updated to include this information.
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dj/rs (dpa, AFP, AP)