A threatening situation involving a knife took place last week at the Stuttgart Wine Village, a local folk festival. As reported by the newspaper Esslinger Zeitung, last Wednesday a 23-year-old man approached the staff of the wine village with a knife and is said to have shouted ‘I’ll take you all to Allah!’.
The staff recapitulated to the Esslinger Zeitung that it was already late when the incident occurred. The public festival had ended that day and the staff had sat together after work, drinking and chatting. After midnight, a man is said to have walked past and shouted that the music should be turned off, to which the employees replied that he should leave them alone and go away. ‘Then we thought that was it. But then he suddenly came around the corner again and had a knife in his hand and threatened us,’ said one of the organisers.
A short time later, the man is said to have appeared again – this time with a knife in his hand, imitating slashing gestures. ‘Thank God security was on the scene immediately,’ said one employee. The police were also on site ‘incredibly quickly, in just a few minutes.’ When asked by NIUS, a police spokesperson said that the officers were aware of the incident.
A 23-year-old man is being investigated for threatening behaviour and the suspect is a man holding a German passport. An extremist background is not assumed and the man has since been released. The argument at the festival is said to have been fuelled by playing music.
As those involved told the Esslinger Zeitung newspaper, the situation has left its mark. ‘We do wonder how safe it is here when more and more people are walking around with knives. It didn’t used to be like this,’ said the organiser. There are also concerns about the security staff: ‘They should actually be better equipped, with protective waistcoats and the like. We organisers would also contribute to the funding – that’s not the point.’