Arson series and cinema shooting: Perpetrators active despite police warning!

Arson series and cinema shooting: Perpetrators active despite police warning!

There was recently a disturbing incident in Krefeld in which a man was accused of carrying out a series of fires and a violent altercation. What is worrying is that the alleged perpetrator was contacted by the police just hours before the crime. This happened on October 10th when an employee of the “Periscope” prevention program approached the 38-year-old about psychological problems. According to the ministry letter, the police planned to have a preventative interview with him, which indicated a known risk.

The North Rhine-Westphalia police's “Periscope” prevention program aims to identify and treat dangerous situations at an early stage. The accused was initially placed in test case level 1 on September 17th, which meant basic checks. Just days before the crime, his case was upgraded to Level 2, prompting a more extensive investigation. However, a possible classification as a high-risk person was only considered after the incident.

The perpetrator's actions

On the evening of October 10th, the man is said to have set a fire in his apartment. Fortunately, there were no other people in the building at the time. His propensity for violence was also expressed in the destruction of a parked car when he broke windows and poured flammable liquid into it, which he then ignited. He then went to the nearby employment agency and set a fire there too.

During his escape, a dangerous situation arose when the accused attacked a young person with a metal object. Luckily, the boy was able to find refuge in a police vehicle a few meters away and alert the officers to the danger. This led to immediate prosecution of the perpetrator.

The situation escalated further when the man spilled petrol in the foyer of a cinema. Police became aware that the suspect could potentially be armed and attempted to set the gasoline on fire with a lighter. The approaching police officers asked him to stop and throw away his weapon. But the man didn't listen to this instruction.

He ran towards the cinema halls, where there were numerous moviegoers at that time. To clarify the situation, the officers fired shots to stop the man. The incident ended with the suspect being injured in the thigh and collarbone, leading to his arrest.

The perpetrator's history

The suspect, an Iranian, came to Germany illegally for the first time in 2002 and had since lived in various European countries. After serving a prison sentence in Krefeld from 2010 to 2014, he disappeared from the city for almost a decade, but returned in April 2024. Authorities previously had problems returning him to Iran because he had not signed a necessary declaration for his return. A readmission request from France had also been rejected, complicating his legal situation.

After the public prosecutor issued an arrest warrant for attempted aggravated arson on October 11th, the investigation has now begun. These are intended to clarify what exactly triggered these shocking acts. However, so far there is no concrete information about the perpetrator's motives or the background to the crimes, which is why the case in Krefeld is moving further into the public eye.

For detailed information about the incidents and the ongoing investigations and how these may be linked to the security measures in North Rhine-Westphalia, see the report from www.borkenerzeitung.de.