German stabbing suspect, 26, admits to crime
Police officers detain a person, following an incident in which several individuals were killed after a man randomly stabbed passers-by with a knife at a city festival, in Solingen, Germany, August 24, 2024.PHOTO: REUTERS/
The suspect in custody for a stabbing rampage in the western German city of Solingen that killed three people and injured eight is a 26-year-old man who admitted to the crime, authorities said early on Sunday.
"The involvement of this person is currently under intensive investigation," Duesseldorf police and federal prosecutors said in a joint statement.
The details provide a somewhat fuller picture of an account late on Saturday by a state official who announced on German television the arrest of the man that authorities had been searching for in the 24 hours since the attack.
The attack, for which the Islamic State group claimed responsibility, occurred on Friday evening at a festival to celebrate the city's 650-year history.
Der Spiegel, citing unidentified security sources, said that the suspect was Syrian and that his clothes had been smeared with blood.
The police declined immediate comment on the Spiegel report.