German police said Wednesday that a man who zig-zagged an SUV at high speed through a pedestrian zone in the southwestern city of Trier, killing five people including a 9-month-old baby and seriously injuring more than a dozen, has started talking to them.
Authorities did not give any details on what the suspect was telling police during the interrogation.
The man, identified as a 51-year-old German born in Trier, was arrested at the scene Tuesday. He was to be taken before a judge for an arrest warrant, the German news agency dpa reported.
A police officer guards evidence at the scene of an incident in Trier, Germany, Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020. German police say people have been killed and several others injured in the southwestern German city of Trier when a car drove into a pedestrian zone. Trier police tweeted that the driver had been arrested and the vehicle impounded.(AP PhotoMichael Probst)
He was to undergo a psychiatric examination as well.
The suspect, whose name was not released in line with German privacy laws, had no fixed address and had been living in the Land Rover that a friend had loaned him, which was used in the attack, authorities said.
Officials said during a press conference Tuesday night that they had “no indication that there was any kind of a terrorist, political or religious motive that could have played a role.”
Evidence lies at the scene of an incident in Trier, Germany, Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020. German police say people have been killed and several others injured in the southwestern German city of Trier when a car drove into a pedestrian zone. Trier police tweeted that the driver had been arrested and the vehicle impounded.(AP PhotoMichael Probst)
The suspect had consumed a “not insignificant” quantity of alcohol before the incident and was well above the legal limit.
Four people were still in life-threatening danger in the hospital and five others suffered serious injuries, while another six had less serious injuries. Police later said one of the injured succumbed late Tuesday, but provided no further details.
The others killed were identified as a 25-year-old woman and a 45-year-old man from Trier; the baby’s mother was among those hospitalized. Police said the oldest victim was aged 73.
Police officers guard evidence at the scene of an incident in Trier, Germany, Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020. German police say people have been killed and several others injured in the southwestern German city of Trier when a car drove into a pedestrian zone. Trier police tweeted that the driver had been arrested and the vehicle impounded.(AP PhotoMichael Probst)