Several Injured in German Train Station Axe Attack
A man was arrested after injuring at least seven people with an axe at a train station in Dusseldorf, Germany in what appeared to be a random attack, according to local police.
Officers were alerted to the attack at the German town’s central train station shortly before 9 p.m. local time. A large-scale response ensured, police officers and emergency officials evacuated the train station and rerouted the trains coming in to other stations.
“A person, probably armed with an axe, attacked people at random,” a statement from police read. At least seven people were injured but reports from local media say as many as nine could be hurt. Three are in critical condition as of Friday morning, according to police.
On Thursday night, police believed there to be more than one attacker, telling local media that two had been arrested and more could be on the loose, but as of Friday morning police believe there was only one attacker at the Dusseldorf train station.
The suspected attacker was arrested after jumping off an overpass near the train station, the statement said. The 36-year-old man was described as being from “the former Yugoslavia” and living in the nearby city of Wuppertal. The man suffered serious injuries and is being treated in a hospital.
Police believe the suspect has “psychological problems.”
An axe was recovered from the scene and police have closed the train station for an investigation.
German authorities have heightened security measures following a series of public attacks over the past year. In July, a 17-year-old Afghan asylum-seeker traveling on a train injured five people with an axe and a knife before being shot dead by police.