Hostage-taking in Cologne Central Station in 2018

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The scene of the crime the day after the crime: McDonalds on the left and the train station pharmacy on the right

On October 15, 2018, there was a hostage-taking in Cologne Central Station , which was preceded by an arson attack with a Molotov cocktail. Three people were injured in the act.

Sequence of events

At around 12:45 p.m., the perpetrator first poured gasoline on the floor of a McDonald’s snack bar at the rear exit of Cologne Central Station and then threw a Molotov cocktail into the bar. A 14-year-old girl from Hennef suffered severe burns on her legs. According to her, the perpetrator had already drawn a pistol before the arson started.

Presumably because the sprinkler system started to work, he went to a nearby pharmacy , where he took a woman hostage . A special police unit managed to free the hostage. The alleged perpetrator was seriously injured by a head shot while the officers were attacked and had to be reanimated . Several gas cartridges and fire accelerators were found at the train station, as well as an improvised explosive device with steel balls. In addition, the perpetrator carried an airsoft gun with him. A total of three people were injured in the act.

The Federal Public Prosecutor's Office drew the investigation, as the case could have "special significance". She initially suspected a terrorist background, but now doubts it, as it is currently not apparent that the suspect was particularly religious or radical.

The main train station in Cologne was cordoned off extensively, and the train service was suspended for five hours. The rail traffic came to a large standstill and was seriously disturbed into the night.

Suspect

The ID of a man from Syria who was 55 years old at the time of the crime was found in the pharmacy. According to the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF), he originally entered Europe on a visa issued by the Czech embassy in Beirut . The man has been in Germany since March 2, 2015 and has a residence permit according to Section 25 (2) AufenthG , limited to June 18, 2021, as a Syrian war refugee in the Federal Republic. Before he came to Germany, he had applied for asylum in Prague . According to the Dublin Convention , the suspect should have been sent back to the Czech Republic , but the BAMF exceeded the deadline and Germany was responsible for him. However, during a review after the hostage-taking in October 2018, the authority could no longer determine why it had missed the deadline.

His wife had not received a permit to enter the country because, from the point of view of the Cologne immigration authorities , he had done too little to secure his own livelihood and had not attended any integration courses.

A few months before the crime, the suspect had given the police a clue about a potential Islamist. During the crime, the suspect then claimed to have ties to the so-called “ Islamic State ” by shouting to passers-by that he belonged to the “Daesh” terrorist group. The term "Daesh" is not used by IS fighters, however, the term rather serves to distinguish it from the organization. A house search also found no references to "IS" or any other terrorist organization . According to police, the suspect was drunk during the act.

The suspect has been investigated 13 times since 2016 for theft , trespassing and drug-related offenses . According to the Cologne Public Prosecutor's Office , some preliminary proceedings against the man were closed due to insufficient suspicion. Only one complaint on suspicion of fraud was charged, the trial is still pending. The city of Cologne announced that the 55-year-old Syrian was legally in Germany and could not have been deported. Apart from the classification as a war refugee , the city is also bound by a decision of the BAMF, which states that the asylum seeker could only have been expelled if he had received a sentence of at least two years in prison, which was not the case with the Syrian .

The investigative commission that was set up, initially with over 100 police officers, was unable to determine any radical Islamist background in the three weeks after the crime. The commission assumes a confused and sick individual perpetrator . The 55-year-old was addicted to tablets and heavily gambling. The case was returned to Cologne by the Public Prosecutor's Office in December 2018.

The suspect was in a coma for two months due to the head injury . After he woke up again and was available, a judge in the university hospital issued him the arrest warrant for attempted murder and dangerous assault. There will be no trial in the foreseeable future, as the accused is incapable of negotiating. An expert suggested moving to a neurological rehabilitation clinic, whereupon the judges of the OLG Cologne decided in May 2019 to refer the accused to a special clinic for six months. Doctors consider it possible to be able to negotiate in the future.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Jean-Pierre Ziegler, Lukas Eberle: Taking hostages in Cologne - access with two stun grenades. In: spiegel.de. October 15, 2018, accessed October 17, 2018 .
  2. ↑ Victims of hostage-taking in Cologne: "I saw that my right foot was burning" , WeltN24, November 28, 2018.
  3. ↑ Taking hostages at Cologne Central Station: Police do not rule out terrorist attack. In: Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung . Retrieved October 15, 2018 .
  4. ^ Cologne: The hostage taker is said to have known himself as an IS member. In: Zeit Online . October 15, 2018, accessed October 15, 2018 .
  5. ↑ Fabian Wahl: Taking hostages in Cologne Central Station: SEK frees women from the perpetrator's violence. In: wdr.de . October 15, 2018, accessed October 15, 2018 .
  6. ↑ Cologne Central Station: What we know about the hostage-taking. In: Zeit Online. October 16, 2018, accessed October 16, 2018 .
  7. ↑ a b c Previously convicted asylum seekers could not be deported. In: ksta.de. October 16, 2018, accessed October 16, 2018 .
  8. ↑ General Federal Prosecutor takes on the investigation. In: tagesschau.de. October 16, 2018, accessed October 16, 2018 .
  9. ↑ Federal prosecutor suspects terrorist motive in Cologne. In: sueddeutsche.de. October 17, 2018, accessed October 17, 2018 .
  10. ↑ Doubts about an Islamist motive , on tagesschau.de
  11. ↑ Chris Merting: After being taken hostage at Cologne main station In long-distance traffic there is a risk of further delays. In: express.de. October 16, 2018, accessed October 17, 2018 .
  12. ↑ News blog about the hostage-taking in Cologne: perpetrators wanted to travel to IS in Syria . In: Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger . ( ksta.de [accessed October 17, 2018]).
  13. ↑ a b "Hostage takers could have been deported" Zeit.de of October 19, 2018
  14. ↑ Missed deadline - hostage-takers from the main train station could have been deported. In: rundschau-online.de. October 18, 2018, accessed October 18, 2018 .
  15. ^ Georg Mascolo : Central Station in Cologne: How the hostage-taking could come about , Süddeutsche Zeitung, October 26, 2018.
  16. ↑ Was the hostage-taking in Cologne an unsuccessful attack? In: dw.com. October 15, 2018, accessed October 16, 2018 .
  17. ↑ Taking hostages in Cologne: What we know - and what not. In: Spiegel Online. October 16, 2018, accessed October 16, 2018 .
  18. ↑ Cologne only narrowly escaped a disaster. In: ksta.de. Retrieved October 16, 2018 .
  19. ↑ Daniel Taab: Taking hostages at the train station Perpetrator was addicted to gambling - no evidence of terrorist motive. In: Kölnische Rundschau. November 11, 2018. Retrieved November 11, 2018 .
  20. ↑ Investigator: No Islamist motive in the hostage-taking and arson attack in Cologne. In: Kölnische Rundschau. December 14, 2018, accessed December 14, 2018 .
  21. ↑ Tim Stinauer: Attack at Cologne Central Station - the hostage taker has woken up from a coma. In: Kölner Stadtanzeiger. December 14, 2018, accessed December 14, 2018 .
  22. ↑ Tim Stinauer: Cologne main station hostage taker - does not have to answer in court for the time being. In: Kölner Stadtanzeiger. April 27, 2019, accessed April 27, 2019 .
  23. ↑ Daniel Taab: judge decides captors from Cologne Central Station is released from custody. In: Kölnische Rundschau. May 16, 2019, accessed May 16, 2019 .