Knife attacker shot dead by police in central Munich
A 30-year-old woman was shot dead by police in Munich on Saturday evening after she injured passersby with a knife at Theresienwiese, the site of the city’s annual Oktoberfest celebrations. The motive behind the attack remains unclear, but police say there is no ongoing threat to the public.
Key information
- Incident: Knife attack occurred Saturday evening at Munich's Theresienwiese.
- Attacker: A 30-year-old woman of Bulgarian origin.
- Police response: Officers opened fire after the woman injured at least two people and continued to wield a knife.
- Casualties: The woman died in the hospital following emergency surgery; at least two people were injured.
- Ongoing investigation: The motive and potential connections to the victims remain unclear.
The city of Munich was left in shock on Saturday evening after a woman attacked multiple people with a knife near Theresienwiese, prompting police to intervene with lethal force. The 30-year-old attacker, reportedly of Bulgarian origin, was shot by officers and later died in the hospital following emergency surgery. Authorities confirmed that at least two people were injured, though the full extent of casualties has not yet been disclosed.
According to police statements and media reports, the woman first stabbed a man near Westendstraße behind Theresienwiese. Moments later, she injured another woman in the nearby district of Schwanthalerhöhe. Police patrols were quickly dispatched to arrest the suspect, but she continued to brandish the weapon despite commands to disarm.
Faced with an ongoing threat, police officers opened fire. The exact number of shots fired has not been confirmed. Emergency services transported the attacker from the scene to a Munich hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries. "There is no longer any danger to citizens," the police stated in a brief evening press announcement.
Authorities have yet to establish whether the attacker had any prior relationship with the injured victims. The case has sparked comparisons with a similar event that occurred at Hamburg's central train station just two weeks earlier, when a woman injured 18 people in a random knife attack before being detained and placed in a psychiatric facility.
Investigators are now working to determine the background and motive of the Munich attacker. Theresienwiese, where the incident unfolded, is best known as the expansive site of the Oktoberfest beer festival, which attracts millions of visitors each autumn. While the area was not crowded at the time, the attack has once again drawn attention to the issue of sudden acts of violence in public spaces in Germany.
Source: Spiegel, Bild
