Attack in Magdeburg: The attacker had previously threatened to attack another part of Germany

Tálib A., whose Friday attack on Christmas markets left at least five dead and 200 injured, was already sent to prison for 90 days in 2013 for disturbing public order by threatening to commit crimes, Pegel said.

Tálib A. completed part of his medical practice in Stralsund in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. In a dispute over the recognition of exams, he allegedly threatened representatives of the regional medical chamber with committing an act that would attract international attention. He was referring to the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing.

During the investigation, according to Pegel, the man’s home was also searched. However, nothing was found that would indicate real preparation for committing an attack, nor any connection with Islamism. “On the contrary, he clearly distanced himself from it and took the opposite position,” said Pegel.

In January 2014, the man was suspected of coercion. When he applied to the authorities for social support, he again threatened actions that would attract international attention if he did not receive it. He also threatened to kill himself. The police warned the man of the possible consequences and told him that they would deal with him in more detail.

In 2015, in a letter addressed to the judicial authorities, Tálib A. committed an insult when returning to his conviction from 2013. On the hotline of a federal office, he complained that the judges in question in Rostock were racist and threatened to get a gun and he will take revenge on the judges. In addition, he expressed the opinion that the basic law in Germany, i.e. the constitution, is itself xenophobic.

However, the authorities did not classify the man as a dangerous person. According to Pegel, this would require suspicious clues with an ideological background.

The head of the Federal Criminal Office (BKA) Holger Münch said in an interview with German television ZDF on Saturday that his office received a tip about a man from Saudi Arabia last November, which led the authorities to initiate “appropriate investigative steps.”

“The man also published a huge number of posts on the Internet. He was also in contact with various authorities, committed insults and even threats. However, it was not known that he would commit violent acts,” Münch added. According to him, the warnings from the man were also very imprecise.

The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) said on the X network on Saturday that it was alerted to the suspect in the summer of last year. “We took it seriously, as well as all the numerous warnings,” the office said. However, he noted that he is not an investigative agency and that he has passed the information on to the responsible authorities.