Car Speeds into Crowd in Mannheim: Police in Major Operation

According to the Baden-Württemberg Interior Minister Thomas Strobl (CDU), two people lost their lives, and many others were injured. The motive is currently unclear. Investigators do not believe there is a political background.

According to the police, five people were seriously injured, and five were slightly injured.

According to Strobl, a 40-year-old German from Rhineland-Palatinate was behind the wheel of the car. He has been arrested and is injured in a hospital. Investigators do not believe there are any other perpetrators.

The State Criminal Police Office has taken over the investigation with the Mannheim Public Prosecutor's Office, the investigators reported. It is still unclear whether it was an accident or if the driver is mentally ill. According to eyewitness reports, the man allegedly drove his car from Friedrichsring into the several hundred meters long main shopping street and hit or ran over several pedestrians at the level of Paradeplatz. A carnival market with dozens of food stalls and rides is currently taking place on the Planken and around the water tower. According to Strobl, there is currently no evidence that the act is related to a carnival event.

According to a dpa reporter, debris was lying at the scene. Photos also show the completely wrecked black compact car of the alleged driver.

The public prosecutor accuses the landscape gardener of, among other things, murder. An investigation has been initiated for double murder and multiple attempted murder, said Schüssler. The man had previously come to the attention of the authorities, but rather with minor offenses. There are a few previous convictions that date back a long time, said Schüssler. These include an assault for which he served a short prison sentence over ten years ago, as well as a case of drunk driving.

Police: Avoid Mannheim City Center

The investigations are in full swing, said a police spokesperson. Further details about the driver or the background have not yet been disclosed. The police asked people to avoid the city center and take wide detours.

To care for those affected, psychological support was set up on site. According to its own statements, the University Hospital Mannheim implemented a disaster and emergency plan to prepare for the care of the injured. A total of eight trauma teams were provided, both for adults and children. Currently, two adults and one child are being treated with high medical urgency.

Carnival Parades Canceled

Following the fatal incident in Mannheim, several carnival parades planned for Tuesday in Baden-Württemberg have been canceled. According to the city, the carnival parades planned for Tuesday in the suburbs of Feudenheim, Neckarau, and Sandhofen in Mannheim have been canceled. The so-called carnival market at the water tower is closed, and the street carnival in the city center will not take place, the city reported.

The cities of Heidelberg and Schwetzingen in the Rhein-Neckar district are also affected. In Weinheim on the Bergstraße (also Rhein-Neckar district), the so-called marketplace carnival is canceled, as confirmed by the municipality. In Heidelberg, the clubs united in the Heidelberg Carnival Committee and the city agreed on this step in a crisis meeting. Schwetzingen is located west of Heidelberg.

In Thoughts with the Victims and Their Families

"The terrible images from Mannheim are shocking, and our thoughts are with the victims and their families. Our neighboring city has to endure such a terrible act of violence for the second time within a year - in such a situation, it was unimaginable for us to celebrate a joyful carnival parade here in Heidelberg," said Heidelberg's Mayor Eckart Würzner.

As the Karlsruhe Carnival Committee announced, the carnival parade in the Baden metropolis will take place on Tuesday. "A cancellation is not currently planned," the committee stated upon request.

Politicians Express Grief

Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier expressed his deep sympathy to the relatives of the victims. "I am following the developments in Mannheim as closely as possible from here." Steinmeier wished the injured a speedy recovery. The Federal President also thanked the police and rescue forces for their efforts.

Similarly, Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Union Chancellor candidate Friedrich Merz expressed themselves. Scholz wrote on X: "Once again, we mourn with the relatives of the victims of a senseless act of violence and worry about the injured. We cannot accept this." CDU leader Merz also stated on X: "My thoughts are with the victims and their families. The incident - as well as the horrific acts of recent months - urgently reminds us: We must do everything to prevent such acts." Germany must become a safe country again.

Case Evokes Memories

The case evokes memories of several attacks in recent weeks where vehicles drove into crowds. In December, six people lost their lives in Magdeburg when a now 50-year-old doctor sped through the Christmas market. In mid-February, a man drove his vehicle into a group of demonstrators in Munich. A young woman and a child lost their lives in the incident.

At the end of May last year, on the Mannheim marketplace, the suspected Islamist Sulaiman A. injured five participants of a rally by the Islam-critical citizens' movement Pax Europa (BPE) and a policeman with a knife. The 29-year-old policeman Rouven Laur later succumbed to his injuries. Another officer shot the attacker down.

The Federal Prosecutor's Office states that the accused is believed to have sympathies for the terrorist militia Islamic State (IS). The alleged perpetrator is currently on trial in Stuttgart.

Mannheim is located in the north of Baden-Württemberg on the border with Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate. With around 320,000 inhabitants, the city is the second-largest in Baden-Württemberg.

(APA/Red)

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