Cologne attack suspect extradited from Switzerland
One of the suspects in attacks on women in Cologne, Germany on New Year’s Eve has been arrested in northern Switzerland after robbing a store. He was extradited to Germany on Friday.
Police said the 19-year-old Moroccan citizen was arrested on Thursday afternoon in Kreuzlingen along with a 24-year-old. The two had stolen cigarettes and food from a shopping centre in neighbouring Constance and fled across the border on foot with a store employee in pursuit.
They were eventually stopped by both German police and Swiss border guards, one of whom recognised the 19-year-old as a suspect in the Cologne attacks.
The suspect agreed to be extradited to Germany for trial, according the Federal Police. This took place on Friday.
Reports that the 19-year-old had applied for asylum in Switzerland were confirmed by the Federal Office for Migration on Friday. Police checks found no international search request for the man, a spokesman told the Swiss news agency.
Last New Year’s Eve in Cologne, hundreds of women reported having been sexually assaulted by gangs of men in the streets. Many of the suspects are still being sought by police.
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