Two people have been killed after a vehicle drove into a pedestrian area in Mannheim, western Germany. The victims were an 83-year-old woman and a 54-year-old man.
Ten others were injured in the incident—five seriously and five with minor injuries, according to investigators.
Authorities have arrested a 40-year-old German man as the lone suspect. Officials stated he showed “concrete indications of mental illness” and is not believed to be linked to extremism. The suspect, identified as a landscape gardener, is in stable condition in the hospital after shooting himself with a gun loaded with blanks.
The incident occurred around 12:15 local time. CCTV footage captured a black Ford hatchback speeding along Planken shopping street heading west. Images from the scene showed the vehicle with heavy front-end damage and missing a hubcap on its front left wheel.
Thomas Strobl, interior minister of Baden-Württemberg, said the man used the vehicle “as a weapon,” noting it was one of several recent crimes where a car was misused in this manner. He added there is no evidence connecting the incident to the Easter carnival taking place in the city.
Police are investigating two counts of murder and several counts of attempted murder, according to Mannheim chief public prosecutor Romeo Schluessler.
Mannheim’s Mayor Christian Specht described the incident as “abhorrent” and “inhumane,” stating: “Our thoughts are with the dead and injured, their families and friends.”
Germany’s outgoing chancellor, Olaf Scholz, thanked emergency services and expressed sympathy for victims and witnesses in a social media post.
The incident comes during heightened security for Easter celebrations across Germany. A market has been closed, a street carnival in the city center has been canceled, and carnival events in nearby suburbs.
Germany has experienced several violent attacks in the past year. Nine months ago in Mannheim, an Afghan man stabbed several people, killing a policeman. In August, a knife attack in Solingen left three dead and eight injured, with the Syrian suspect allegedly linked to the Islamic State.
In December, a car ramming at a Christmas market in Magdeburg killed six and injured 299, leading to the arrest of a Saudi psychiatrist. January saw an Afghan asylum seeker attack children in a Bavarian park, killing a child and a good Samaritan. In February, another Afghan asylum seeker drove into a crowd, injuring over two dozen people, with two later dying from injuries.
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