Nearly nine months after a fatal knife attack on a group of nursery school children in Bavaria, court proceedings have begun to determine whether the suspect can be held criminally responsible.
The Aschaffenberg District Court is investigating whether Enamullah O., a 28-year-old Afghan man who is believed to be suffering from mental illness, was of legal sane at the time of the January 22, 2025 attack.
Prosecutors, citing a forensic-psychiatric report indicating insanity, are seeking his permanent confinement in a psychiatric hospital.
Prosecutors say there is no indication the man had extremist or terrorist motivations.
Afghan man faces murder and other charges for brutal knife attack on children
According to investigators, the suspect used a 30 centimeter long kitchen knife in the attack on a group of children in Schöntal Park in the city of Aschaffenburg.
A two-year-old Moroccan boy was badly injured and a 41-year-old German man who tried to help also died.
The attacker also reportedly attacked a two-year-old Syrian girl and a 73-year-old German man with a knife, both of whom survived.
The 59-year-old teacher’s hand was broken during the attack.
The suspect, who was known to police for previous attacks, damaging property and resisting officers, fled the scene but was arrested near the railway tracks about 12 minutes after the first emergency call went out. A blood stained knife was found nearby.
Prosecutors named Inamullah O. Has been charged with multiple counts of murder, attempt to murder, murder, attempt to murder, intimidation and grievous bodily harm.
The current court proceedings will also cover a separate incident at a refugee shelter in August 2024, where Inamullah O allegedly strangled a female resident and then injured her with a knife.
Six court sessions are scheduled through October 30.
Suspect avoided deportation and had a history with police
German authorities say Inamullah O promised to voluntarily self-deport in December after his asylum application was rejected, but he ultimately failed to do so. Germany had previously tried to deport him to Bulgaria – where he first reached Europe – in 2023, but failed.
The shocking January attack came just a month before Germany’s federal elections. Along with other violent attacks, this also influenced the political debate of the campaign.
The crime boosted support for the far-right, anti-immigrant party Alternative for Germany (AfD) and prompted then-candidate Friedrich Merz to promise to crack down on migration and tighten borders “from day one” if elected, as support for a tougher approach to immigration grew.
Merz and Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt have taken a more robust approach to migration since taking office, particularly with regard to resuming deportation flights to countries such as Syria and Afghanistan, which were previously designated unsafe countries of origin and therefore not suitable for repatriation but are now considered safe.
Editor’s note: DW follows the German press code, which emphasizes the importance of protecting the privacy of suspected perpetrators or victims and urges us to avoid disclosing full names in such cases.
Edited by: Roshni Majumdar