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Court Orders Indefinite Psychiatric Commitment for Aschaffenburg Knife Attacker

The ruling follows expert testimony that he was not criminally responsible due to paranoid schizophrenia.

Overview

  • The Landgericht Aschaffenburg placed the 28-year-old in a psychiatric hospital without a fixed end date, with the measure to be reviewed at least annually.
  • Prosecutors, victims' counsel and the defense had all asked the court to order psychiatric confinement based on his condition and risk profile.
  • A forensic psychiatrist testified he suffered from paranoid schizophrenia, had likely stopped taking antipsychotic medication days before the attack and posed a very high risk of further violence if released.
  • On January 22, 2025, he stabbed a group in Schöntal Park, killing a two-year-old boy and a 41-year-old man who intervened, and seriously injuring a two-year-old girl, an educator and another helper.
  • The case unfolded in a Sicherungsverfahren centered on criminal responsibility and prevention, with coverage also noting prior brief psychiatric admissions, a failed 2023 deportation and a separate conviction of a police officer for failing to pursue an earlier 2024 incident.