Germany Trial: Magdeburg death driver to stand trial in November
The driver responsible for the death of the Magdeburg Christmas market will stand trial on November 10. This was announced by Magdeburg District Court. On December 20 last year, Taleb al-Abdulmohsen drove a car through the Magdeburg Christmas market. He is said to have killed six people and injured more than 300, some of them seriously. A nine-year-old boy and five women aged between 45 and 75 were killed. A separate building was built for the trial to accommodate the more than 100 co-plaintiffs.
17.10.2025, 09:39
SDA
Multiple murder and attempted murder
In mid-August, the public prosecutor's office in Naumburg brought charges against the 50-year-old al-Abdulmohsen. The doctor is accused of multiple murder and attempted murder. The public prosecutor's office also accuses the man of causing grievous bodily harm. According to the district court, al-Abdulmohsen is being defended by two lawyers.
More on the course of the trial to follow
According to the regional court of the state capital of Saxony-Anhalt, 147 co-plaintiffs are currently admitted to the trial before the first large criminal chamber of the jury court. Further persons have applied for admission. "The number can change again and again in the course of the trial," said court spokesman Christian Löffler on request.
The joint plaintiffs are to be represented by around 40 lawyers, he said. It is not yet clear how many trial days there will be. It is also not yet known how many trial days are planned and how many witnesses and expert witnesses have been summoned. "This is all part of a schedule for the trial," explained Löffler. This is expected next week.
Non-public meeting before the trial
According to the public prosecutor's office, the attack lasted one minute and four seconds. The Saudi doctor had used a 340 hp rental car. He is said to have driven through the Christmas market at speeds of up to 48 kilometers per hour. According to the information, he injured a total of 344 people.
According to Löffler, there will be a meeting before the public trial begins. The presiding judge wants to coordinate with the defense attorneys, the public prosecutor's office and the co-plaintiffs' attorneys on the "outer course" of the main hearing. The defendant and the co-plaintiffs will not take part, it was said. Such a non-public hearing is provided for by law for extensive criminal proceedings such as the one against al-Abdulmohsen.
Specially built interim court building
An interim court building has been erected so that all those affected - if they wish - can attend the trial. The dimensions are enormous: the courtroom alone is 65 meters long and 30 meters wide, offering space for around 450 joint plaintiffs and their legal advisors. Around 200 visitors and media representatives can follow the trial.
According to the Saxony-Anhalt Ministry of Justice, all existing courtrooms in the state would not have been sufficient. This is one of the largest criminal proceedings in post-war history, which places special demands on space, organization and security.
Dissatisfaction and frustration
In a statement on the indictment, the Public Prosecutor General's Office said that the crime had been planned and prepared in detail for several weeks. Al-Abdulmohsen had "apparently acted out of dissatisfaction and frustration over the course and outcome of a civil dispute and the unsuccessfulness of various criminal charges, with the aim of killing an unspecified, maximum number of people and groups of people who would enter the driving area of his vehicle". There were no accomplices or confidants.
The regional court had recently referred the case to the Federal Public Prosecutor General for prosecution. It had assumed that the crimes in question were likely to impair the security of the Federal Republic of Germany. Karlsruhe rejected the takeover on the grounds that there was no connection to state security.
Doctor in psychiatry with professional deficits
Before the death drive, al-Abdulmohsen worked as a doctor of psychiatry and psychotherapy in the psychiatric hospital in Bernburg (Salzland district). People who have committed crimes due to mental illness or drug addiction are treated there.
According to his employer, al-Abdulmohsen has repeatedly attracted attention there, for example through confusing emails, unreliability and professional deficits. According to a report, he was not trusted to undergo psychotherapeutic treatment.
At the beginning of February, it became known that a colleague had been concerned about al-Abdulmohsen's condition a few months before the attack and had also passed this information on to superiors. Several security authorities also repeatedly dealt with the perpetrator, but he had ultimately fallen through the cracks as an opponent of Islamists.
