Berlin Metro Attacker Jailed for Booting Woman Down Stairs in Horror Assault

The 28-year-old man who sparked internet outrage after leaked footage showed him kicking a woman down the stairs of a Berlin metro station has been jailed for nearly three years.

Identified only as ‘Svetoslav S.’, the man was sentenced to two years and 11 months in prison after he was convicted of causing grievous bodily harm by a German court.

Police appealed for witnesses to the October 2016 attack by releasing footage of a young woman being kicked down the stairs of Hermannstrasse U-Bahn station. She suffered a broken arm and head injuries.

Svetoslav admitted to kicking the woman in court, but maintained that he had no memory of the incident as he was under the influence of alcohol, marijuana, cocaine and crystal meth at the time.

The Bulgarian apologized to his victim in court and insisted he only became aware of the incident after watching the footage online like everyone else. “I found it horrible myself when I saw it,” he said, reports Süddeutsche Zeitung.

The sentence was less than the three years and nine months sought by the prosecution after Svetoslav has found to not have full control over his emotions or decisions.

The court heard from his wife, who claimed the pair had fought that night, and Svetoslav had struggled to control his aggression and drug dependency since a car crash in 2008 left him badly injured.

A psychiatric expert testified that Svetoslav suffered a serious head injury in the crash and had reduced culpability as a result of the alcohol and drug abuse. The expert also claimed Svetoslav had an IQ of 63, classifying him as intellectually impaired and unable to control his emotions.

Then you add drugs and alcohol and his IQ was probably closer to half that. Mind you, use of drugs and alcohol should not diminish responsibility or reduce culpability. When we choose to use alcohol or drugs, we are choosing to reduce our mental and emotional capabilities.

Youths Who Set Fire to Homeless Man in Berlin Arrested; All are Refugees

Six are from Syria and the 7th from Libya

Refugee suspects surrender to police after homeless man set on fire in Berlin

The suspects accused of setting a homeless person on fire in the Berlin underground have been identified as refugees from Syria and Libya, police confirmed. Six of them surrendered to police, while the seventh was arrested in a police operation.

“Six suspects turned themselves in at various police stations [Monday] evening, [and] another suspect was arrested last night by undercover investigators,” an official police release said. 

The seven young men allegedly set a homeless person on fire as he slept at the Berlin Schonleinstrasse station overnight into Christmas Day on Sunday, police say.

The attackers fled the scene, but the victim survived without any injuries after passersby helped to extinguish the flames.

Following the incident, police released images of the perpetrators, asking locals to help identify them. Law enforcement officials qualified the incident as an “attempted murder,” and announced that an investigation was underway.

Police have now been able to establish the identities of all of the suspects, and have stated the men are all refugees aged between 15 and 21.

"The seven suspects are all young men between 15 and 21 years of age,” Thomas Neuendorf, deputy head of the Berlin police press office, told Ruptly video agency.

“Six of the suspects were born in Syria and one of the suspects was born in Libya. All of the suspects have refugee status here [Germany]," the official said.

It is so far not clear when exactly the suspects entered the country, Spiegel Online reports, citing a police spokeswoman.

Police have also identified the main suspect in the case, Berlin’s RBB reports. “We know who the prime suspect is. It is the 21-year-old [refugee],” the police spokesperson told the media outlet.

Berlin’s minister for the interior, Andreas Geisel, branded the attack “inhumane” and thanked the passersby for coming to the aid of the homeless person.

“I am horrified and I am thanking all those who courageously helped. This is truly a fellow-humanity,” Geisel said, as quoted by Die Zeit. 

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Police in Berlin recently used video images to arrest another underground attacker. Two weeks ago CCTV footage emerged showing a male kicking a young woman down the stairs at a station, breaking her arm.

Although the incident happened back in October, police released the video evidence over a month later, asking for help in the identification of the assailant. On December 18, law enforcement finally managed to detain the attacker, who turned out to be a 27-year-old Bulgarian man. He is now being investigated alongside his two brothers and another person seen in the CCTV footage during the assault.