Police Tracked 21-Year-Old Before Fatal Berlin Truck Attack, Says Spiegel

German authorities wiretapped and monitored 21-year-old Abdul Ballout for weeks before he drove a van into a crowd in Berlin, killing a Polish citizen and injuring 29 others.

Weeks of Surveillance Before the Attack

As reported by “Der Spiegel,” citing sources in the German security services, the observation of Abdul Ballout was set to last several weeks before the attack. Authorities wiretapped his phone and installed a hidden camera.

During the surveillance of the German citizen, however, no plans to carry out a terrorist attack were detected.

A camera installed by the Berlin police recorded the moment the 21-year-old left his residential building on the Saturday before the attack. The daily noted that the footage showed no signs indicating preparations for an act of violence.

Pledge of Allegiance Found on Phone

On the same day, German media citing prosecution sources reported that investigators found a video on the 21-year-old’s phone in which he admits to the attack and pledges allegiance to the so-called Islamic State. The man in the video has his face covered, but according to investigators, it is most likely Abdul Ballout.

Details of the Berlin Attack and Manhunt

On Saturday evening, 21-year-old Abdul Ballout, a German citizen of Lebanese descent and an IS sympathizer, drove a van into a crowd in an alleyway in Berlin’s Tiergarten park, near where the Pride Parade was taking place. One person died—a 65-year-old Polish citizen—and 29 were injured. None of them are currently in life-threatening condition. On Sunday, the man was shot dead during a police manhunt in the allotment gardens area in the Spandau district in the west of the city. On Monday, the Polish National Prosecutor’s Office announced the initiation of an investigation into the attack.

Background and Prior Convictions of the Suspect

Berlin Attack. The suspect was previously convicted of planning a terrorist attack. According to published court data, Ballout grew up in the Schöneberg district of Berlin under the care of his parents, alongside one older and two younger sisters. After finishing school, he completed several internships in craft businesses and worked for a time as a security guard.

Between 2023 and 2024, he was married to a woman from Salzburg in accordance with Islamic law. According to the court, in the recent period he had no income of his own and supported himself through social benefits and pocket money. Court information stated that the attacker was deeply religious, prayed five times a day, and regularly attended the mosque. He reportedly distanced himself from extremist views and violence.

The daily “Berliner Zeitung,” which reached out to the man’s neighbors, reported that he had a reputation as a quiet and helpful guy. His family was not particularly religious, although police assessed him as an Islamist who tried to join the so-called Islamic State. As “Der Spiegel” reported, his father forbade him to wear a long beard.

On May 12, the juvenile court sentenced Abdul Ballout to 22 months of youth detention, among other things for preparing a serious act of violence. However, the arrest warrant was suspended, and the man was released. The court found no risk of flight, commission of a crime, or obstruction of proceedings in his case.