One dead, seven injured in Stuttgart after car drives into crowd

Berlin, May 3 (IANS) One person has died and seven others were injured, including three seriously, after a car drove into a group of pedestrians in the city center of Stuttgart, southwestern Germany, according to local police.

The incident occurred in the Olgaeck area of the Stuttgart-Mitte district, Xinhua news agency reported.

Both the police and the fire department were responding to the event.

Local police confirmed the victim figures in an update, adding that at least one person required resuscitation. Rescue operations were ongoing, the police said.

The incident occurred around 6 p.m. local time in the city center when a black SUV drove into a crowd, according to local media reports.

Police have indicated that preliminary investigation suggests it was an accident.

"Based on the current state of investigation and available evidence, our colleagues at the #Olgaeck scene believe this to be a tragic traffic accident. There are currently no indications of an attack or a deliberate act," Stuttgart police said on X.

According to the authorities, there is currently no indication of an attack or an intentional act. It was believed to be a tragic traffic accident.

The driver of the involved SUV was arrested, who is reported to be a 42-year-old man.

"Five people were slightly injured and three seriously injured in the accident. Of the seriously injured, a 46-year-old woman has since succumbed to her injuries in the hospital," police said in a Friday evening statement.

In an earlier post on the social media platform X, Stuttgart Police said all evidence pointed to a "tragic traffic accident" and that they had found no evidence of an attack.

The incident happened at an above-ground subway stop in Stuttgart city centre, police said.

Police had assured the public that there was no further danger related to the incident.

The driver of the Mercedes vehicle was apprehended at the scene, a police spokesperson told reporters.

The area remained cordoned off as emergency responders, police and forensic specialists examined the scene.

Witnesses were being interviewed and subway services through the area were suspended.

Germany has seen a spate of car ramming attacks in recent years, with fears high that such incidents might repeat again.

Two people died on February 13 after they were injured in a car-ramming attack on a labour union demonstration in Munich.

Around 39 people were injured in the attack and police arrested a 24-year-old Afghan national who came to Germany as an asylum seeker. Prosecutors said he appeared to have had an Islamic extremist motive.

On December 20, 2024, at least five people were killed and more than 200 were injured when a car slammed into a Christmas market in Magdeburg in eastern Germany.

And in June 2022, a 29-year-old man drove his car into a crowd of people in Berlin, killing one person and injuring dozens. Police identified the driver as a 29-year-old German-Armenian man.

--IANS

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