Amok drive in Leipzig: Man charged with murder of two people in pedestrian zone
Nearly four months after the fatal amok drive in Leipzig city centre, prosecutors have filed charges of double murder against a 33-year-old man.
Prosecutors file murder charges after fatal amok drive in Leipzig
Nearly four months after the fatal amok drive in Leipzig city centre, prosecutors have filed charges against a 33-year-old German man. According to Google News DE — Crime (de), the charges are for double murder as well as attempted murder in 85 further cases. Additionally, there are 91 counts of serious dangerous interference with road traffic, a spokeswoman for the prosecution confirmed. The Leipziger Volkszeitung had previously reported on the filing of charges.
In early May, the man drove his vehicle several hundred metres through the pedestrian zone, striking multiple people. A 63-year-old woman and a 77-year-old man died as a result; six further people aged between 21 and 87 were injured, including a 75-year-old and an 84-year-old who suffered serious injuries. The driver eventually stopped the vehicle himself and allowed himself to be arrested without resistance. He was subsequently admitted to a psychiatric clinic.
The prosecution is now requesting that his admission be lifted and that an arrest warrant be issued against the 33-year-old. According to the spokeswoman, this is because a preliminary written report from the forensic psychiatric expert provided no indication of diminished responsibility for his actions.
The authority made no statement regarding possible background or motives. However, investigators had previously stated that there were no indications of a political or religious motive for the act.
According to reports, the accused had been in inpatient treatment at a psychiatric facility just days before the amok drive. The Ministry of Social Affairs in Dresden confirmed that he had stayed there at his own request and had been discharged at the end of April. He had previously come to the attention of police—among other things for threats and offences against honour without physical violence, such as insults or degradation.
The Leipzig Regional Court will now decide on the admission of charges and a possible trial date. The 33-year-old's defence lawyer was initially unavailable for comment.
Following the incident, Leipzig experienced a broad wave of mourning. Flowers and wreaths were laid at the entrance to Grimmaische Straße, where the drive had begun. Several thousand people mourned together at the university, the Nikolaikirche and the Thomaskirche.
This subsequently sparked a nationwide discussion about the safety of city centres. The German Association of Cities and Municipalities pointed to the conflict between security and openness and emphasised that such acts could never be completely prevented despite existing security concepts. Mayor Burkhard Jung described the act as a personal shock: "It hit me hard. You can't really be prepared for something like this," he told the Deutsche Presse-Agentur. As president of the German Association of Cities, he underlined that cities must remain places of community.
A few days after the amok drive, the city installed several so-called Oktablöcke at the entrances to the city centre to block vehicle access.
Source: Google News DE — Crime (de)