Cops are baffled after a man in an Emporio Armani designer hoodie walked into a German underground station with a live hand grenade before apparently getting nervous and escaping after dumping the live device on the ground.
Police are speculating that the man might have become scared about detonating it inside and ran off without properly pulling out the pin from the live device.
Police trying to find out the motive behind the potentially deadly attack which would have caused a blast that killed or maimed anyone within 20 metres (66 feet) some 45 seconds after the pin was pulled.
The individual can be seen coming from a moving escalator while wearing a dark blue Emporio Armani hoodie, black tracksuit pants and white sneakers.
The suspect hides his face under a baseball cap and behind a medical mask as he enters the station with his hands in the hoodie’s pockets. He initially heads towards the upward escalator before going the other way.
Several commuters had called the police in Frankfurt am Main, Hesse State, after discovering the hand grenade lying on the ground next to a wall in the city-centre Hauptwache underground station on 31st October.
A police spokesman said: “Investigations have shown that the hand grenade contained explosive material, meaning that it was functioning. The safety pin was still there.”
He added: “We have received several tips which are currently being followed up.”
Reacting to speculations by local media, he added: “There is currently no evidence that the incident is linked to the conflict in the Middle East.”
Hauptwache is one of the city’s busiest public transport hubs. The multi-storey underground station features several underground lines and express train connections.
The confiscated hand grenade was identified as a Yugoslavian M52 model, say local media. A detonation could reportedly have killed anyone within a radius of 20 metres (66 feet).
In a statement from 31st October obtained by Newsflash, the Frankfurt am Main Crime Office said: “On 31st October at 4.36am, an unidentified person placed a functioning hand grenade at Hauptwache station.
“The person fled towards Eschenheimer Gate afterwards.”
The statement continues: “Who knows the pictured person or can provide information regarding his whereabouts?”
Netizens expressed their gratitude towards the police.
User ‘Stef Anie’ said: “Thank you for avoiding a catastrophe and for your efforts each and every day under difficult circumstances.”
‘Mari Pa’ added: “You are our guardian angels.”
And ‘Louis E Bro’ argued: “Anyone hooded and disguised that way should be checked upon. Thankfully I’ve stopped using public transport in the pandemic.”
