Volunteers for knife attack victims

“Everything was covered in blood; he turned completely pale”

Members of the Rapid Intervention Group (SIG) were able to apprehend the suspect shortly after the incident.(Bild: FOTOKERSCHI / WERNER KERSCHBAUMM)

Two first responders who rushed to the victims’ aid on Saturday evening following the two knife attacks on a public street in downtown Linz describe in an interview with “Krone” how they experienced the dramatic incident. A 26-year-old man unfortunately succumbed to his life-threatening injuries in the hospital.

Zana Mussa (26), owner of the Linz barbershop “De Luxe,” is stunned. “The two victims were regular customers who had their hair and beards trimmed by me just before the attack.” The Kurdish-born man finds it hard to believe that the 26-year-old Afghan, Mahmoud A., is no longer alive: “He and his two friends were such nice people—always friendly and helpful, never aggressive.”

On Saturday, shortly after 5 p.m., Mahmoud A. and his two compatriots were still customers at the barbershop. A. was the last of the trio to take a seat in the barber’s chair. The other two had meanwhile gone outside to smoke a cigarette. 

Argument on Bismarckstraße
“Suddenly, a driver honked his horn outside. An older driver was apparently annoyed that a pedestrian had crossed the street right in front of him. The pedestrian then punched the driver’s side mirror and tried to attack him,” Mussa recounts.

The two Afghans outside the bar immediately rushed to the old man’s aid and emphatically told the aggressive pedestrian to leave him alone. “But he threatened to go get his friends.”

About 30 minutes later, however, the pedestrian—a 34-year-old Croatian—returned alone and stabbed one of the three Afghans, who were just on their way home, in the neck with a knife. “There was blood everywhere. My colleague immediately called for an ambulance. The injured man’s face turned completely white; I grabbed a cloth and pressed it against his wound,” said Mussa. He calmed the Afghan down and spoke reassuringly to him. The 24-year-old underwent emergency surgery at Linz University Hospital and is no longer in critical condition.

“He stabbed him”
Shortly thereafter, the aggressive man is believed to have also attacked Mahmoud A. Sophie Thewanger (28) from Schönering was sitting in the outdoor seating area of Ristorante Surace, eating ice cream. “Suddenly, someone shouted, ‘He stabbed him,’” recounts the pastry chef, who has also been a member of the fire department for 15 years and takes an annual first-aid refresher course.

Thewanger saw a man lying on the ground on the sidewalk in front of the Wild jewelry store. “I sprinted over immediately and saw a stab wound on the right side of his chest. He was still gasping and trying to breathe.” She placed the Afghan man in the recovery position and supported his head.

Together with two other first responders—including a doctor—she performed CPR until the emergency doctor arrived. Although Mahmoud A. was taken to Kepler University Hospital, he succumbed to his severe injuries there. He leaves behind a brother but has no other family members; he apparently wanted to become a nurse.

Suspect turned around twice
Thewanger saw the perpetrator running away down Magazingasse. “He turned around twice, but fortunately didn’t come back.” The 28-year-old learned from other eyewitnesses that the attacker had previously stomped violently on the head of A., who was already lying on the ground with severe injuries. “When I heard that the police had caught him, I was very relieved.”

What was going through your mind during the resuscitation? “Nothing at all; I was functioning like a machine—it all happened automatically. That also shows how important it is to practice first aid regularly.”

Wife warned of rampage
Another chilling detail: The 34-year-old Croatian had already told his wife that afternoon that he was going to go on a rampage and kill someone. Although the woman notified the police, it was already too late: While they were still searching for him, he committed the bloody crime on Bismarckstraße.