- After the attack on the restaurant, two teenagers are being investigated.
Following an attack on a pizzeria in Eislingen (district of Göppingen), two teenagers are being investigated, among other charges, for attempted murder. Initial investigations by the Ulm Public Prosecutor's Office and Criminal Police suggest that the two juveniles were involved in the crime, as stated in a joint press release on Monday.
On Sunday, an Ulm judge issued arrest warrants for suspicion of attempted murder in conjunction with the detonation of an explosive device, as well as arson. The teenagers are currently in custody. The motives remain unknown, and the Public Prosecutor's Office declined to comment on the ages and identities of the suspects.
At the time of the explosion, two men aged 53 and 56 were in the pizzeria and sustained minor injuries. One of them was the owner.
Damage is estimated at at least 50,000 euros
The suspects are believed to have initially thrown a stone through a window before at least one of them hurled an explosive or incendiary device through the opening into the restaurant.
The blast caused significant damage: all ground-floor and first-floor windows, as well as the interior of the pizzeria, were destroyed. The police initially estimated the damage at at least 50,000 euros. Witnesses were urged to come forward.
No connection to the bloody feud
At this stage, there is no indication of a connection to the bloody feud between two rival groups in the Stuttgart metropolitan area. "We have no evidence to suggest that," said a spokesperson for the Public Prosecutor's Office.
The two groups – one roughly associated with the Esslingen, Ludwigsburg, and Plochingen region, the other with the Stuttgart district of Zuffenhausen and Göppingen – are believed to consist of more than 500 mostly young people, according to earlier estimates by experts. To date, more than 70 suspected members have been arrested.
Over 200 search warrants have been executed, 31 firearms seized, and around 50 knives recovered. According to investigators, it remains largely unclear why the two groups are engaged in such violent conflict. LKA President Andreas Stenger believes it is not related to family clans or classic organized crime.
The charges against the teenagers also include destruction of property, in addition to attempted murder. The explosion and subsequent damage were not part of the ongoing feud between the two groups.
