Berlin Attack Perpetrator Likely Still At Large After 1st Suspect Released

The man arrested by German police on suspicion of having perpetrated the truck attack which killed twelve people in Berlin has been released due to lack of evidence.

Naved B, a 23-year-old asylum seeker from Pakistan, was arrested after he was seen leaving the scene after the attack. However, according to local German media, police quickly became convinced that Naved was not the person they were after. Reportedly Naved had no blood on his person, despite the fact the truck cab was covered in blood.
According to authorities, the man denied all involvement and cursory investigation “did not result in an urgent grounds for suspicion.”
As a result, the driver is thought to still be at large, and police are still searching. Holger Münch, the head of the federal criminal police, said that the nation needed to be on high alert. “We need to work on the assumption that an armed perpetrator is still on the loose. As a result of this we are on high alert.”

The Federal Prosecutor’s office issued a statement about the release of the first suspect:

The accused man who had been temporarily arrested after the attack on the Berlin Christmas market on 19 December 2016 was released in the evening on the orders of the Federal Prosecutor’s Office. The investigations so far did not result in an urgent grounds for suspicion. He made extensive statements in a police hearing but denied involvement. A complete tracking of the truck driver after the attack has not been done by eye witnesses. The criminal investigations carried out so far have not been able to prove a presence of the accused during the incident in the truck.

Earlier, the Brandenberg Gate lit up with the flag of Germany in commemoration of those who were killed in the attack.

We’ll keep you posted.
Source: The Guardian.
Photo: Getty Images / BERND VON JUTRCZENKA.

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