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Man Held in Berlin After Body, Believed to Be of Missing 4-Year-Old, Is Found in Car Man Held in Berlin After Body, Believed to Be of Missing 4-Year-Old, Is Found in Car
(about 4 hours later)
BERLIN — The police in Berlin said on Thursday that they had arrested a 32-year-old male suspect following the discovery in his car of a body believed to be that of a 4-year-old boy who disappeared after he was separated from his family in the chaos outside the city’s main refugee registration center. BERLIN — Law enforcement authorities in Berlin said on Thursday that a 32-year-old man confessed to killing a 4-year-old boy whose disappearance from outside of the capital’s main refugee registration center earlier this month had raised alarms about chaotic conditions for migrants.
The police said in a statement that the suspect was being questioned in connection with the boy’s disappearance, but they declined to give any further information pending the outcome of the investigation and autopsy. The authorities said the man, who was arrrested at his mother’s home, showed them a child’s body, which was covered in kitty litter, in the trunk of his car.
The missing boy, identified as Mohamed Januzi, was first reported to have disappeared on Oct. 1. He was separated from his mother and siblings as they waited in the crush of several thousand people who gather each day in the courtyard outside the Berlin Office of Health and Social Affairs to submit asylum applications. The police said the man’s mother drew them to the house, after she called to say that her son had told her he had killed the child. The suspect, who was only identified by his age, remains in custody, but has not yet been charged.
Mohamed’s case has come to symbolize the dangers for migrants when officials are overwhelmed, and many in Germany have expressed concerns about the strain on resources with more than 800,000 people expected to seek asylum in the country this year. The missing boy, Muhammad Januzi, was first reported missing on Oct. 1, after he was separated from his mother and siblings outside the Berlin Office of Health and Social Affairs. Several hundred people gather each day in the courtyard outside of the building to wait for an appointment to register for asylum or to receive other services.
The boy’s family is believed to have come to Germany several years ago from Bosnia-Herzegovina, and was not among the tens of thousands of migrants and refugees who have walked through Europe in recent months. Nevertheless, his disappearance and suspected killing gripped the capital and raised concern for the welfare of refugee children.
The case focused attention on Germany’s difficulty with processing the streams of migrants who are being transported from border areas and relocated around the country. Overall, many in Germany have expressed worries about the strain on resources throughout the country, with more than 800,000 people expected to seek asylum there this year.
An autopsy for the slain 4-year-old has not yet been completed, said Michael von Hagen, a Berlin state prosecutor. “But based on the testimony of the suspect, it is believed to be the missing 4-year-old,” he said.
Authorities had not yet determined a motive for the suspected killing, Mr. von Hagen said, adding they had no indication of far-right extremism or a hatred of foreigners.
An initial video showing the boy leaving the area while holding a man’s hand on the day he was reported missing helped the police and prosecutors search for the child.An initial video showing the boy leaving the area while holding a man’s hand on the day he was reported missing helped the police and prosecutors search for the child.
This week, prosecutors released a second video showing the man walking along the street in the neighborhood near the center and offered a reward for information regarding his identity.This week, prosecutors released a second video showing the man walking along the street in the neighborhood near the center and offered a reward for information regarding his identity.