German police detain suspected bomber outside football stadium

Published
0

The suspect was found outside Borussia Dortmund’s stadium. —Reuters photo
The suspect was found outside Borussia Dortmund’s stadium. —Reuters photo

BERLIN: German police have detained a 25-year-old man suspected of planning a bomb attack outside Borussia Dortmund’s stadium, they said on Thursday.

The Federal Crime Office (BKA) said it found and defused three suspected explosive devices near the stadium used by the Bundesliga club. Police also found three explosive devices in the flat of the suspect, who was German.

A spokesman for Berlin’s Interior Ministry said: “There is no indication of any links to terrorist organisations.”

He added: “The suspect was apparently acting on his own with a criminal motivation. There was no danger to any third parties at any time.”

The BKA said it began its investigation in February after an anonymous email tip was sent to the German embassy in Islamabad.

The sender offered to provide information about two simultaneous attacks planned in Germany.

Police said the person who sent the anonymous tip became a suspect related to a possible extortion attempt. He was detained in a hotel in Cologne on Tuesday and told authorities about the six explosive devices near the stadium and in his flat.

Authorities said the man detained was also a suspect in an unresolved extortion attempt against a German company in 2010.

Opinion

Editorial

Parliament’s place
Updated 11 Oct, 2026

Parliament’s place

In 2015, the parliament had decided to “maintain neutrality in the Yemen conflict so as to be able to play a proactive diplomatic role to end the crisis”.
Disturbing the peace
11 Oct, 2026

Disturbing the peace

THIS year’s Nobel Peace Prize is well-earned. The winner, South African jurist Dr Navi Pillay, has had an...
A voice in care
10 Oct, 2026

A voice in care

WORLD Mental Health Day this year carries a compelling message. The theme, ‘Lived experiences heard: real voices,...
Midterm break
Updated 10 Oct, 2026

Midterm break

Both the US and Israel need to halt their destructive misadventures in the Middle East.
American barbarism
Updated 10 Oct, 2026

American barbarism

WITH the spectre of defeat in the upcoming midterm elections looming large over the Trump administration, the...