THE suspect behind the horror attack in Munich that injured 36 people when a car ploughed into a crowd had an Islamic extremist motive prosecutors have said.
More details about the life of Farhad N. are coming to light as he is being investigated by terror cops after allegedly ramming into a group of demonstrators in the Bavarian capital on Thursday.
Farhad is said to have “sped up” in a Mini Cooper before hitting the crowd of 1,500 Verdi demonstrators, leaving a two-year-old in a critical condition and injuring many others.
Police confirmed that 36 people were injured in the heinous attack.
Out of this group of victims, which include a mother and a two-year-old, two are severely injured and eight are seriously injured.
A press conference held on Friday morning saw police and prosecutors state that the 24-year-old Afghan asylum seeker admitted to deliberately driving into the demonstrators.
According to prosecutor Gabriele Tilmann, he then “gave an explanation that I would summarise as religious motivation.”
He made the comments during a two-hour interrogation it has been revealed.
The investigation took a more serious look into a religious motive after the suspect prayed and said “Allahu Akbar,” or “God is great” to police after his arrest, Tilmann said.
He was detained by police at the scene who fired gun shots at the suspect after “did not give up immediately.”
Christian Huber, Vice President of the Munich Police said at the press conference: “I believe we have prevented something worse from happening.
“It was not the case that the perpetrator gave up immediately.
“I would like to thank all the emergency services on site. Our thoughts are with all the injured and their families.”
Tilmann tentatively said that it can be seen as an “Islamic extremist attack,” that he worked alone, and is not thought to be affiliated to known groups.
FINAL MESSAGE
Investigators are continuing to assess his phone and social media activity to find out any more about his motive.
One message has revealed that before the attack he said goodbye to loved ones.
Guido Limmer, deputy head of the Bavarian State Criminal Police Office said that Farhad communicates primarily in Arabic and in one messaged told a relative: “Tomorrow I won’t be here anymore.”
He regularly attended a mosque and had no prior convictions but had previously been receiving medical treatment for post-traumatic stress disorders and hallucinations.
On Thursday, cops searched an apartment building in the Solln district of Munich believed to belong to Farhad.
“We were not able to find anything searching his apartment and that specifically pointed to preparations for this attack,” the police confirmed at the conference.
He is set to appear before a judge on Friday afternoon.
After attempting to claim asylum in Italy and having his application rejected, Farhad arrived alone in Germany in 2016 when he was 15-years-old.
He was taken in by the Inner Mission Children and Youth Services and applied for asylum in 2017 which was rejected as was his subsequent appeal.
Farhad N was later granted what’s called a toleration permit, which means his deportation was suspended, Spiegel claims, but he has been required to leave the country since autumn of 2020.
WANNABE INFLUENCER
Prior to the attack, Farhad built up a strong following on social media, regularly posing pictures of his body-builder physique and seemingly lavish lifestyle.
He called himself a bodybuilder and tried to be an influencer as he flashed his cash and designer clothes online before allegedly posting Islamist content.
According to Bild, he had won regional bodybuilding championships which saw him become something of a celebrity in the fitness world with 68,000 followers on Instagram and almost 33,000 on TikTok.
On both pages he would pose in front of designer stores and sports cars while showing off his expensive clothing.
It is not known where his money came from but according to Bild, he worked for a security service and had been a store detective.
Both accounts were deleted after the attack on Thursday.
He is alleged to have posted Islamist content on social media before the heinous incident as a neighbour has claimed he was often overhead having aggressive phone calls.
They told Focus Online that he “seems to have argued a lot” in loud phone calls while another neighbour said he was always friendly and would say hello.
The suspect has undergone two “security policy interviews” with immigration authorities and is not listed in the Joint Federal and State Counter-Terrorism Center, the news outlet has said.
TRAGIC DETAILS
Police spokesperson Christian Huber, revealed the tragic details behind the incident.
He said that a police vehicle was near the back of the demonstration when a “vehicle approached and came up” behind it.
The car then “moved to overtake” and “accelerated” before colliding with demonstrators at the back of the 1,500-strong group.
Witnesses said the impact sent terrified pedestrians fleeing for the cover of nearby shops and homes.
One eyewitness on the scene said the Mini hit a woman and child, explaining that they were “apparently lying under the car”.
Another who is a German journalist shared on social media that people were left in shock “crying and shaking” on the ground.
“A person was lying on the street and a young man was taken away by the police,” she said.
Shocking pictures show the devastation and panic caused by the image with a collapsed pram on the ground as well as shoes, umbrellas, and discarded bags.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that the suspect cannot hope for leniency and must leave the country.
He also spoke more widely about immigration in Germany.
Scholz said: “It is very important for me to get the message across that anyone who commits crimes in Germany will not only be severely punished and sent to prison, they must also expect that they will not be able to continue their stay in Germany.”
He explained that this is “why” he got the government “to resume and carry out repatriations to Afghanistan, despite the lack of diplomatic relations”.
The Chancellor added: “We have already organised such a flight with criminals.
“We are also in the process of doing this in other cases. And not just once, but on an ongoing basis.
“This perpetrator cannot count on any leniency, he must be punished and he must leave the country.”
Recent German terror attacks
THE terrifying Munich incident comes after the country has seen a wave of recent attacks.
In late January a two-year-old boy and a man were killed in a stabbing in Aschaffenburg, also in Bavaria.
This attack is thought to have been carried out by another Afghan asylum seeker whose application to stay in the country had been rejected.
In December, 2024, six people were killed and over 200 injured when a car rammed into a crowded Christmas market in Magdeburg sparking far-right protests.
On Thursday as the incident in Munich unfolded, an Afghan man named Sulaiman A went on trial in Stuttgart for a knife attack on May 31, 2024 in Mannheim.
The suspect with suspected jihadist motives is accused of launching the attack that killed a policeman and injured five others at an anti-Islam rally.
Bavaria’s Prime Minister Markus Söder used this most recent incident and the wave of other attacks to call for change in the country.
The 58-year-old said: “It is suspected that this was an attack.
“The attack shows that something has to change in Germany – and quickly!
“An event in Aschaffenburg in January and now in Munich…It’s simply enough.”
Germany’s approach to asylum seekers and security is facing huge scrutiny as the issues come to a head before the national election on February 23.