5 months ago
An American has been stabbed after confronting a Syrian national in Germany after allegedly stepping in to help two female passengers being harassed on a tram, according to reports.
The young man was attacked at around 12:25 a.m. on Sunday after intervening when “two men from a group harassed female passengers” on the tram in the eastern German city of Dresden, Saxony police said in a statement.
Pictures from the scene show blood spattered over the tram along with empty booze bottles as well as tissues that other passengers used to halt the bleeding.
The unidentified American was rushed to the hospital in a serious condition with knife wounds to his face, according to police.
“A 21-year-old US citizen intervened and was injured with a knife by one of the other perpetrators in the ensuing altercation,” police said in a statement.
“The US citizen suffered multiple cuts to his face with a knife,” police spokesperson Thomas Geithner told German outlet Bild.
One suspect, a 21-year-old Syrian national named as “Majid A” by police, was arrested less than half a mile away at another tram stop on suspicion of being involved in the attack after allegedly beating up the American man on the tram, Bild reported.
He was released by police later on Sunday, despite having previous charges of grievous bodily harm, robbery and illegal entry, Bild reports.”He was temporarily arrested and released by the prosecutor’s office,” Geithner said.
Authorities in Dresden said that they didn’t have enough evidence linking the man to the knife attack.
“According to the on-call public prosecutor’s assessment, there were insufficient grounds for detention. The knife attack cannot be attributed to him,” Senior Public Prosecutor Jurgen Schmidt told Bild.
A second man, who allegedly returned to the tram and stabbed the victim, is still on the run, according to German police.
“We are investigating him and the still unknown man for, among other things, grievous bodily harm,” the police statement continued.
Surveillance footage from the tram is currently being studied by police, who have urged witnesses to come forward.
“In particular, the numerous tram passengers who can provide information about what happened,” police said.
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