On Monday evening, a van sped through the centre of Vienna and crashed into the statue of Pestsäule am Graben. After the attacks in Magdeburg and Munich, as well as the rampage with an as yet unknown motive in Mannheim, many feared a similar terrorist attack, passers-by panicked and fled.
A terrorist attack was quickly ruled out: The police stated that an intoxicated driver lost control of his vehicle and there were no injuries. However, it has now been revealed: The man went on a rampage when he was arrested, shouting clear slogans – and it wasn’t ‘his’ vehicle either.
The van, which belongs to a Viennese construction company, was stolen from a building site in Vienna’s Penzing district shortly before the rampage in the pedestrian zone. The man drove it from Habsburgergasse in the first district into the ditch, alternately accelerating and braking. The collision with the statue occurred when police officers became aware of the man and the stolen vehicle hit the pillar’s bollards.
The man resisted arrest and is said to have shouted ‘Allahu Akbar’, ‘I’ll fuck your mum’ and ‘I’ll sink you all in the canal’ several times. His escape was ended after just a few metres; the 35-year-old’s blood alcohol level was measured at 1.2 per mille. He was admitted to a psychiatric hospital due to his mental health problems.
https://unzensuriert.at/291730-mit-gestohlenem-auto-unterwegs-innenstadt-raser-schrie-allahu-akbar