The man in the stabbing was identified Issa al H., a 26-year-old Syrian who came to Germany at the end of December 2022, according to the German news outlet Welt. He had previously applied for asylum in Bielefeld. The suspect turned himself in to police patrol and his clothes were covered in blood at the time of the arrest.
He went into the station and confessed, "I am the one you are looking for," and had apparently been hiding in his backyard.
The arrest took place after police previously arrested a man at a building housing refugees near the site of the attack who was believed to be connected to the crime. BILD reported that the police stormed the center and placed a 36-year-old man under arrest. However, he was "not the person we had in our sights from the beginning," said Interior Minister Herbert Reul. "The person we had been looking for all day is now in custody."
It was previously reported that authorities had also detained a 15-year-old boy who may have had prior knowledge of the attack. Additionally, the US Sun revealed that the attack had been claimed by ISIS, and that the suspect allegedly shouted "Allahu Akbar" while carrying out the stabbings.
There have been three arrests total made in connection to the stabbings on Friday evening.
ISIS claimed the attack after it happened, writing in a statement, "The perpetrator of the attack on a gathering of Christians in the city of Solingen in Germany yesterday was a soldier of the Islamic State."
Additionally, "A witness who was injured in the attack stated that the unknown suspect was 'known from Solingen' and that he was also a visitor to a local mosque. A witness reported that the suspect shouted 'Allahu Akbar' during his actions," police wrote in a report about the suspect, reported to be Issa al H.
