Suspect in Berlin Highway Attack Moved to Psychiatric Jail

According to German media reports, the man already was known to Berlin police.

The reports said he was born in Baghdad in 1990 and came to Germany as an asylum-seeker, most likely in 2016.

His asylum request was rejected and his legal status only allowed him to remain in the country until the end of the year, German news agency dpa reported.

Read also: EU Relocates Asylum Seekers to Germany and Finland

In 2018, he was detained for injuring others and taken to a mental institution for a short time, Tagesspiegel reported.

After first living in a refugee home in Berlin's Altglienicke neighborhood, he moved to the Reinickendorf district, where he supposedly lived with his brother, dpa said.

Dpa reported that the suspect allegedly made references to his plans on Facebook before the crashes.

He posted photos of the car that he allegedly drove into the motorcycles, as well as religious writings, the news agency said.

Berlin Mayor Michael Mueller said later on Wednesday that he was shocked by the attack.

"I wish all the victims a speedy recovery and a lot of strength for this difficult time,” Mueller said on Twitter. 

(Writer: Kirsten Grieshaber) 

Source: https://www.apnews.com/10174a1e9a6ce89e8c1b846febc9f02e