Berlin Attack: Tunisian Anis Amri, 24, Identified as Suspect as Police Hunt for 'Violent and Armed' Man
Update 12:54 p.m. ET: The prime suspect in the deadly Berlin Christmas market attack on Monday has been identified as 24-year-old Tunisian migrant Anis Amri. The Washington Post reports that Amri was investigated for terrorism ties in Germany earlier this year but was not deported. German officials describe Amri as "violent and armed."
BERLIN — German police are looking for a Tunisian man after finding an identity document under the driver's seat of the truck that plowed into a Berlin Christmas market, killing 12 people, on Monday evening, news website Spiegel Online reported.
The document was in the name of Anis A., born in the southern city of Tataouine in 1992. The man is also believed to use false names, it said.
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Daily newspaper Bild reported he was known to police as a possibly dangerous individual, and part of a large Islamist network.
Police initially arrested a Pakistani asylum-seeker near the scene, but released him without charge on Tuesday. Authorities have warned that the attacker is on the run and may be armed. It is not clear if the perpetrator was acting alone or with others.
The 25-tonne truck, belonging to a Polish freight company, smashed into wooden huts serving mulled wine and sausages, injuring about 45 people.
The Polish driver of the truck was found shot dead in the cabin of the vehicle. Bild reported that he was alive until the attack took place.
(Reporting by Madeline Chambers)
