German authorities confirm they received an alert about the Magdeburg attacker in 2023

MADRID Dec. 22 () –

The German Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) has confirmed that it received an alert in the summer of 2023 about the suspect detained for the intentional attack on Friday at a Magdeburg Christmas market in which five people and more than 200 died. They were injured.

“The Office received a notice in this regard through its social networks at the end of summer last year about the person suspected of being responsible for the Magdeburg attack,” the agency explained in an official statement.

“This notice was like all the other notices that are received in significant quantities and was also taken seriously,” according to the agency, which recalls that “it is not an investigative body” and therefore transferred the information to the relevant authorities. The BAMF has asked for “understanding” because its work “goes beyond this.” “You cannot comment on individual cases,” he argued.

In recent hours, screenshots of notices sent to the BAMF about the suspect whose authenticity has not been confirmed have circulated on social networks.

An official from the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), Holger Muench, has also confirmed that they received a tip about the suspect from Saudi Arabia in November 2023 and explained that an investigation was opened, but the tip was “abstract” , according to German public television ARD.