The attack happened just before 10pm on Friday night at a festival organized to celebrate the city of Solingen’s 650th anniversary.
– I was standing with a friend by the stage. First there was about ten minutes of nice music but then I heard a scream, I looked to the left and saw a man running, turned around and grabbed another man by the neck, says the eyewitness.
– I thought he wouldn’t run after us because he seemed to attack people at random.
Three people were killed in the stabbing and a total of eight were injured. Five of these are said to be seriously injured, according to the newspaper Solinger Tageblatt.
Continued playing to avoid chaos
DJ Topic was one of the artists who played at the festival in his hometown of Solingen. While Topic was on stage, the man attacked people in the audience. To “avoid mass panic”, he continued his gig.
“There were so many people in front of the stage, so it was obvious that I would continue to play. A mass panic would have been even worse,” he writes in a comment to SVT.
“It felt strange to continue with such a good mood as if nothing had happened.”
The festivities were subsequently called off and attendees were asked to leave the area, the entire festival has now been cancelled.
One arrested – investigating possible connection
A large police operation with special forces and a helicopter has been deployed in the search for the perpetrator. On Saturday afternoon, the police announced that they had arrested a person during a house search in Solingen.
“It is checked whether there can be a connection with the crime. At the same time, various police operations are underway,” they write in a statement.
Interviews with the injured and witnesses are ongoing, and a police spokesperson is asking for help from the public in the form of photos and videos of the incident.