Overview

• A 27-year-old Bosnian-Herzegovinian national was arrested in Essen by special police and is held in pretrial detention for allegedly using organized commercial fraud to fund a planned Islamist-motivated attack.
• Authorities searched six sites across North Rhine-Westphalia, including Essen, Dortmund, Düsseldorf and Soest, during the coordinated operation.
• Prosecutors allege the suspect orchestrated a network of fraud schemes to channel money into the planned attack.
• Security sources say he had no prior state-protection offences but underwent self-radicalization over the past two years.
• The operation underscores intensified collaboration between regional prosecutors and federal investigators to combat homegrown Islamist threats.