Indictment Man charged with attempted murder after knife attack in Olten SO

The Solothurn public prosecutor's office has charged a 42-year-old man with attempted murder. During what was initially only a verbal argument with another man in Olten SO, he grabbed a knife and seriously injured the victim, as the public prosecutor's office announced on Wednesday. According to an expert opinion, he is not guilty.

The argument took place on the evening of July 17, 2022 on Aarburgerstrasse, the statement added. Following the conclusion of the investigation, the public prosecutor's office accused the now 42-year-old Swiss national of attempting to kill the victim by stabbing him in the back and left flank "in a particularly ruthless manner". Respectively, that he had at least accepted his death.

The injured man was taken to hospital and the alleged perpetrator was arrested on the spot. After several months in pre-trial detention, the accused is currently in early detention. The date of the main hearing before the Olten-Gösgen magistrates' court is still pending.

The victim is of a similar age to the perpetrator and the two had known each other, said a spokeswoman for the Solothurn public prosecutor's office when asked by the Keystone-SDA news agency.

Defendant not guilty

According to the statement, the charges are being brought as part of independent proceedings. A forensic psychiatric report had concluded that the 42-year-old was not capable of guilt, said the spokeswoman. For this reason, the verdict does not focus on a prison sentence, but on inpatient therapeutic measures. The perpetrator is currently being held in a closed institution.