Overview
- The trial at Munich’s Higher Regional Court begins nearly a year after a Mini Cooper struck a Verdi-organized march, killing a mother and her two-year-old daughter and injuring 44 people.
- The defendant, a 24-year-old Afghan arrested at the scene, is accused of intentionally driving into a crowd of about 1,400 demonstrators.
- Prosecutors describe the act as Islamist terrorism, citing alleged online radicalization and reported statements and behavior following the crash.
- Investigators say he overtook a police escort, continued about 23 meters after the first impacts, and the vehicle stopped only because victims were trapped beneath it.
- According to investigators, he shouted “Allahu Akbar,” prayed after the attack, and admitted in questioning that he deliberately steered into participants.