A 41-year-old Syrian man has been arrested in Essen, Germany after allegedly ramming a van into storefronts Saturday and setting two fires that injured over 30 people, including two small children.
The suspected migrant attacker is due to appear before a judge on Sunday facing charges of aggravated arson and attempted murder.
The Syrian national is accused of driving a van into two stores and starting two fires, which left two children in critical condition due to smoke inhalation and dozens more injured as exits were blocked off, broadcaster NTV reports.
While local residents attempted to mount a rescue effort of their own, their ladders were not tall enough to reach the windows of the buildings set ablaze, forcing those inside to hang outside of the windows to breathe.
Firefighters, who were forced to confront two fires simultaneously, were fortunately able to save all those inside before any fatalities occurred. Around 160 emergency personnel were involved in the rescue operation, which took around an hour and a half.
After allegedly setting the fires, the migrant is reported to have threatened to stab people with a long blade, before being surrounded by several men clad with shovels and poles, who subdued and detained him until police could arrive.
Essen Mayor Thomas Kufen expressed his gratitude to the fire brigade, police, and rescue workers, saying: “I would like to thank everyone who calmly helped to bring the alleged perpetrator to task for their moral courage.”
Authorities were quick to deny any terrorist motivation behind the attack, with Welt reporting that security service sources believe the attack was rather motivated by a familial conflict. Local police said that initial investigations point to the man becoming enraged over his wife leaving him.
“The acts were obviously aimed specifically at a family,” said Mayor Kufen.
According to the German paper, twelve people were injured in the first fire and a further 19 were injured in the second, with all injuries being caused by smoke inhalation.
Welt reported that two children suffered life-threatening injuries from the smoke, which is particularly dangerous for developing lungs. The two children are believed to be two and four years-old. In total, eight children were hospitalised as a result of the fires.
The suspected attack comes amid a broader debated about immigration in Germany, with the government enacting emergency border controls and seeking to embark upon deportations to Afghanistan and Syria in the wake of deadly terror attacks by migrants in Mannheim and Solingen earlier this year.