BERLIN: Police in southern Germany are appealing for photos and videos taken by witnesses of an attack near Neuschwanstein castle in which an American man allegedly pushed two women down a steep slope, killing one of them. A suspect was arrested following the attack.
German news agency dpa quoted police as saying Friday that they have so far received about a dozen submissions on a specially created website, but assume many more images were taken by tourists present at the site.
“We are looking for photographs which, by chance, show two young women and a man (approx. 30 years old) who were staying east of the Marienbruecke,” Kempten police said on their website. “These persons may have been walking together or separately.”
The Marienbruecke, or Mary’s Bridge, is a popular vantage point for photos of Neuschwanstein, the most famous of the castles built by King Ludwig II of Bavaria in the 19th century.
According to the initial police investigation, the suspect met the two female tourists, Americans aged 21 and 22, on a hiking path and lured them onto a trail that leads to a viewpoint.
“The younger of the two women was attacked by the suspect,” police spokesman Holger Stabik said. “The older one tried to rush to her aid, was then choked by the suspect and subsequently pushed down a slope.”
The assailant then appears to have attempted to sexually assault the 21-year-old before pushing her down the slope as well, prosecutors said. She fell nearly 50 meters (165 feet), ending up close to her friend.
Both women were recovered by mountain rescuers. The 21-year-old was flown to a hospital with serious injuries and later died. The 22-year-old remains hospitalized, but is “responsive,” police said.
Authorities haven’t named either of the victims or given any further details.
The suspect, who likewise was not identified, remains in custody on suspicion of murder and attempted murder, prosecutors said, adding it wasn’t clear how long he had been in the country.
The US Embassy in Berlin said it was aware of the incident and the consulate in Munich was in contact with authorities.
“Due to privacy considerations, we are unable to comment further at this time,” the embassy said in a statement.
German police appeal for images taken of an attack in which Americans were pushed down a slope
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German police appeal for images taken of an attack in which Americans were pushed down a slope
- “We are looking for photographs which, by chance, show two young women and a man (approx. 30 years old) who were staying east of the Marienbruecke,” Kempten police said
- The Marienbruecke, or Mary's Bridge, is a popular vantage point for photos of Neuschwanstein
Trump invites Colombia’s Petro to White House after earlier threat of military action
- Relations between Trump and Petro have been frosty since the Republican returned to the White House in January 2025
WASHINGTON/BOGOTA: Days after threatening Colombia with military action, US President Donald Trump on Wednesday said arrangements were being made for the country’s President Gustavo Petro to visit the White House, following a call between the two leaders. Trump and Petro said they discussed relations between the two countries in their first call since the US president on Sunday said that a US military operation focused on Colombia’s government “sounds good” to him. That threat followed Trump ordering the US capture of the president of neighboring Venezuela, who was flown to the US to face drug and weapons charges.
“It was a great honor to speak with the President of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, who called to explain the situation of drugs and other disagreements that we have had. I appreciated his call and tone, and look forward to meeting him in the near future,” Trump wrote on social media.
Trump added “arrangements are being made” for a meeting in Washington between himself and Petro, Colombia’s first leftist president, but gave no specific date for a meeting.
“We have spoken by phone for the first time since he became president,” Petro told supporters gathered at a rally in Bogota meant to celebrate Colombia’s sovereignty, adding he had requested a restart of dialogue between the two countries.
A source in Petro’s office told Reuters the call was “cordial” and “respectful.”
Relations between Trump and Petro have been frosty since the Republican returned to the White House in January 2025.
Trump has repeatedly accused the administration of Petro, without evidence, of enabling a steady flow of cocaine into the US, imposing sanctions on the Colombian leader in October.
On Sunday Trump referred to Petro as “a sick man, who likes making cocaine and selling it to the United States.”
The US in September had revoked Petro’s visa after he joined a pro-Palestinian demonstration in New York following a meeting of the United Nations General Assembly and called on US soldiers to “disobey the orders of Trump.”
Petro, who has been a vocal opponent of Israel’s war in Gaza, had accused Trump of being “complicit in genocide” in Gaza and called for “criminal proceedings” over US missile attacks on suspected drug-running boats in Caribbean waters.
The Trump administration has carried out more than 30 strikes against suspected drug boats since September, in a campaign that has killed at least 110 people.
