Police shot a 27-year-old Somali migrant in Frankfurt, Germany, who was attacking a man and threatening to kill the officers who asked him to drop his weapons.
The incident took place last weekend in the Bahnhofsviertel area of Frankfurt after the Somali had allegedly attacked another man in a building on Elbestrasse.
Police say the Somali entered the building armed with two knives and attacked a 65-year-old man in his office. The 65-year-old defended himself with pepper spray, and the 27-year-old then fled the building, German tabloid Bild reports.
The victim of the initial attack then pursued the Somali, and police were alerted to the migrant, confronting him and demanding he drop the knives he was carrying. The Somali reacted to the police stating, “I kill you”, and tried again to attack the 65-year-old.
Police officers opened fire as the migrant attempted to attack the victim again, shooting the 27-year-old several times, wounding him in the thigh. The Somali was later taken to a hospital to treat his injuries.
Investigators say they are still looking at a possible motive for the initial attack and the 27-year-old is expected to be charged with attempted manslaughter.
The Frankfurt incident comes just a month after another Somali migrant went on a stabbing rampage in Wuerzburg, killing three women. He then injured several others and was eventually pursued and shot in the leg by police.
It was later revealed that the Somali had arrived just months prior to the height of the European migrant crisis in 2015 and had not been granted full refugee status but given “subsidiary protection” instead.
Würzburg Mayor Christian Schuchardt later expressed concern that the attack might fuel stereotypes of migrants being criminal or violent.
“But I also cried for our city last night. Because of this short circuit, this equating is so obvious. Refugees, immigrants, violent criminals, religious warriors and terrorists – massacres,” he said and added: “However, the crimes of individuals can never be traced back to population groups, religions or nationalities.”