After the allegedly foiled bomb attack on a school in Essen, a judge sent the suspected 16-year-old student into custody. The requested arrest warrant had been issued, said the public prosecutor’s office in Düsseldorf on Friday on request. The young German is accused, among other things, of having prepared a serious act of violence that endangers the state.
The police found right-wing extremist, anti-Semitic and anti-Muslim writings and bomb-making materials on the student. Explosives and 16 tubular bodies, some prepared with clocks and nails, were secured, as well as a home-made rifle and a crossbow with arrows.
In a manifesto, the student wrote about several people he says he hates, the police said. NRW Minister of the Interior Herbert Reul said that found recordings could have been read as “an urgent call for help from a desperate young man”. There are indications that the 16-year-old “had massive mental health problems and suicidal thoughts”.
The arrest warrant had also been applied for against the high school student for violating the Weapons and Explosives Act and for preparing an explosives explosion, it said on Friday morning. A tipster had alerted the authorities: the 16-year-old had told him he wanted to place a bomb in his school.
The student’s current and former schools were then searched with explosives detection dogs. No suspicious items were found. The measures have now been completed. The youngster’s current school, the Don Bosco Gymnasium in Essen-Borbeck, remained closed on Friday.
“The staff will come together at school to reflect on what happened and to prepare for the days to come. This also includes the important oral Abitur exams next Monday, ”explained the school management on the school website. “We are grateful that we were spared worse.”