BERLIN, Dec. 2 (Xinhua) -- The western German city of Trier held a memorial service early on Wednesday for the victims of Tuesday's deadly car rampage in a pedestrian zone, in which five people were killed and another 15 people injured, some of them seriously.
On Tuesday, a man drove his SUV (sports utility vehicle) through a shopping street in Trier, southwest Germany, hitting people at random. The 51-year-old German driver was arrested by the police on the spot after he stopped his vehicle for a moment.
"The motive of the suspect has not yet been clarified," the police noted. At the current stage of the investigation, the police had no indication of any political or religious motives. The Trier public prosecutor's office classified the crime as multiple murder, attempted murder and dangerous bodily injury.
A 45-year-old man and his nine-week-old daughter were killed, according to the police. The mother of the baby girl and another 18-month-old son of the family were taken to a hospital with injuries.
The other victims, who died in the car rampage, were women aged 25, 52 and 73, according to the police. All victims were residents of Trier.
"The news from Trier is very sad," said Chancellor Angela Merkel in a statement published by government spokesperson Steffen Seibert on Tuesday on Twitter.
"My sympathy goes to the relatives of the people who were torn from their lives so suddenly and forcibly," said Merkel. "I also think of those who have suffered severe injuries and I wish them much strength."
Did you find this article insightful?
