Ali P. is 26 years old, unemployed and without a fixed address. He is now on trial in Munich. According to the public prosecutor’s office, the man from Afghanistan first demolished cars and then injured several people in attacks, including police officers. He is considered not guilty.

Many people are familiar with such scenes from videos that often cause a stir on social media. They show violent men running through the streets – armed with wooden slats, iron bars or other dangerous objects – leaving a trail of destruction.

They smash windows, kick car mirrors off, scream and hit people, spreading fear and terror. They even act extremely aggressively towards police officers and seem completely unimpressed. The perpetrators are often young immigrant men.

Such incidents have a massive impact on citizens’ sense of security. They ask themselves: Why can something like this happen in the middle of Germany?

Starting this Tuesday, the Munich Regional Court will be trying to answer these and other questions. The trial will begin there surrounding a series of vandalism and violent attacks on unsuspecting citizens and even on police officers in the Bavarian capital.

The accused is Ali P., who is now 26 years old and comes from Afghanistan. He is unemployed and has no fixed address. The public prosecutor’s office accuses him of several crimes: resistance against and physical attacks on law enforcement officers, intentional and dangerous bodily harm and damage to property.

The authorities assume that the man is not criminally responsible. At the time of the crime, he was suffering from paranoid schizophrenia and still suffers from it today.

It is therefore considered unlikely that Ali P. will ever end up in prison. The public prosecutor’s office has applied for a so-called security procedure and for him to be placed in a psychiatric hospital.

The list of specific crimes that investigators say Ali P. committed is long. It began in October 2022 and only ended with his arrest at the end of June 2023.

While the alleged brute’s violence was apparently initially directed “only” against objects, he later apparently targeted unsuspecting people. The fact that no one was seriously injured or even killed is the only positive thing about the case.

At the same time, one wonders why no one recognized the man’s obvious dangerousness earlier and intervened. How was the attempt made to integrate the man into our society? What went wrong?

After all, the first case mentioned by the prosecutors in their motion occurred on October 21, 2022. In broad daylight, Ali P. is said to have marched through downtown Munich and caused a riot.

According to the public prosecutor’s office, he kicked over two mopeds and an e-bike. He also kicked an electricity box, kicked slats out of a wooden fence and two cars, denting the rear fender of a Mercedes.

The following night, Ali P. is said to have gone on a rampage in his Munich homeless shelter. He kicked several room doors and damaged them badly. He then allegedly destroyed two electric stoves in the kitchen-living room with powerful blows and knocked over a dining table. Property damage from this act of violence alone: ​​1,500 euros.

A few months later, at the end of March 2023, Ali P. apparently lost his temper again. He is said to have kicked two ATMs belonging to the Stadtsparkasse München, damaging them in the process.

But all of this was apparently just the precursor to a series of violent incidents a few months later. In June 2023, the man from Afghanistan is said to have deliberately destroyed several cars. According to investigators, the tool used was a belt wrapped around his fist.

According to the court documents, he used the “weapon” to smash the windshield, rear and side windows of several cars, including BMW, Audi, Hyundai, Mitsubishi, Peugeot and Volkswagen. He is also said to have left dents and scratches and torn off wing mirrors. Damage: several thousand euros.

A few days later, on June 27, 2023, the situation escalated completely. According to investigating authorities, Ali P. was standing at the open door of a subway train right next to a woman. Out of the blue, he is said to have shouted at her, grabbed her by the neck from behind and thrown her out of the carriage with full force.

The now 26-year-old continued driving and got off at a Munich subway station. On the stairs he met a woman, whom he is said to have suddenly hit in the neck.

Shortly afterwards, Ali P. is said to have physically attacked a woman by throwing his suitcase at her left side. All three victims suffered considerable pain.

The fact that there were no further attacks on unsuspecting passers-by is thanks to two police officers who noticed the unpredictable Ali P. When they asked him to stop, he picked up a chisel, which he obviously wanted to use against the officers.

The accused refused to put down the chisel. Even when the police deliberately brought him to the ground, he held on to it convulsively, according to the public prosecutor. Ali P. is said to have fought against his arrest with all his might. Only after two other colleagues arrived did the police succeed in tying up the highly aggressive man.

Ali P. also offered fierce resistance at the police station and injured three officers. They suffered abrasions and scratches.

After his arrest, the accused was immediately placed in a psychiatric clinic. If the public prosecutor’s office has its way, he will remain there and receive treatment.

The authorities see a considerable risk that the man could commit further serious crimes due to his illness and thus pose a danger to the general public.

Ali P.’s defense attorney Martin Scharr from Munich did not want to comment on the proceedings to FOCUS online “at this time.”

Three days of hearings are scheduled. The verdict could be announced on June 17.