Status: 01/03/2023 2:36 p.m
The turn of the year in Berlin was anything but peaceful: 159 people had to be imprisoned as part of the New Year’s Eve riots. 103 suspects have now been released – the investigations against them are ongoing.
103 suspects who were arrested after the New Year’s Eve riots in Berlin are free again. The people were released after their identity was established, the police said on request. There are no grounds for detention against them, a spokesman said. The “Bild” newspaper and the “BZ” had previously reported on it.
The suspects are mainly being investigated for arson offenses, violations of the explosives law, breach of the peace and physical assault on law enforcement officials. In total, the police in Berlin reported 159 arrests during the New Year’s Eve riots. A police spokeswoman was initially unable to say whether the other suspects were also free again.
41 police officers were injured
When asked, the police did not provide any information on who the alleged perpetrators were or where in the city most of the incidents occurred. The evaluations are in progress, and there are still no further findings, said a spokesman.
On Sunday, the police only said that 98 men and five women were among the first 103 arrested. It was also unclear how many of the 41 police officers injured in action were temporarily off duty. The spokesman only said that a police officer who had suffered serious burn injuries has now been released from the hospital.
Debate on firecracker ban
Police officers and firefighters were attacked on New Year’s Eve, including with firecrackers and rockets. In some cases, the police had to be deployed to protect firefighters from attacks while they were putting out fires. The violent attacks on emergency services triggered a debate about the consequences, such as a ban on firecrackers.