Two American soldiers have been arrested in Germany over the death of a young man at a funfair in the west of the country, according to German police.
βFollowing the murder of a 28-year-old man, two suspects were arrested β¦ They are American servicemen,β police in the western city of Treves said in a statement on Sunday.
The death occurred when an altercation broke out between several people at a Saubrenner funfair in the small town of Wittlich, in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate between Treves and Koblenz, on Saturday night.
During the fight, the victim βwas stabbed to deathβ and βfour people, two men and two women, ran away from the scene of the crimeβ, police said, citing witnesses.
Two members of the fleeing group, aged 25 and 26, were quickly identified whom police arrested before handing over to US authorities, who will take charge of the case βin accordance with NATO statutesβ, the police added.
βWeβve never experienced anything like this here,β said Wittlich Mayor Joachim Rodenkirch when asked by the local press.
Colonel Kevin Crofton of the US Airbase Spangdahlem spoke of an βintolerable and avoidable tragedy in our peaceful communityβ, according to the SWR, a local media outlet. He thanked the local police and the town of Wittlich for their βpartnership and patience while the investigation unfoldsβ, the SWR reported.
The United States has had troops stationed in Germany since World War II, but their numbers have declined since the fall of the Berlin Wall from about 200,000 soldiers in 1990 to 34,500 today.
– AL JAZEERA
