A 16-year-old Ukrainian girl who fled the war in her country was murdered by an illegal resident from Iraq who pushed her onto train tracks, according to the German prosecutor's announcement. The suspect (31), who should have been deported in 2022, was arrested over the weekend after his DNA traces were found on the girl's body.
The murder occurred on August 11 at Friedland station in Lower Saxony state. Liana K. (full names of victims and suspects are confidential by law) arrived in Germany with her family from the city of Mariupol in Ukraine following the Russian invasion. According to the investigation findings, an illegal migrant with Iraqi citizenship suddenly pushed the girl onto the train tracks. At that time, she was speaking with her grandfather on the phone, and he heard her screams before she was struck.
The police were called to the scene due to a complaint about a "rampaging man" at the station. They found the suspect in a state of intoxication, which led them to the girl's body. Area residents described him to Bild as "a terrible person, completely insane."
The investigation revealed a series of failures. Mohammed A.'s asylum request was rejected in December 2022, and he should have been deported to Lithuania, the country through which he entered the European Union. He appealed the decision, and it was only in February 2025 that the court rejected his appeal. Last July, immigration authorities requested to arrest him ahead of his deportation, but the court rejected the request, claiming it was "so flawed that it couldn't even be examined."
Initially, police suspected the girl's death was the result of an accident or suicide, and only following the discovery of a large quantity of the suspect's DNA traces on the girl's shoulder did authorities in the state conclude that this was murder. "This involves a quantity indicating a strong push, not accidental contact," the prosecutor stated.
The suspect was transferred to a closed psychiatric facility after a diagnosis determined that he suffers from schizophrenia and refused to speak with investigators. The prosecution is now examining his competency to stand trial. The investigation revealed that Mohammed A. used several different identities. "We're now checking multiple names," he was quoted in Bild, adding that the girl was a "random victim."
The murder sparked public outrage in Germany. The Interior Minister of Lower Saxony from the Social Democratic Party (SPD) said that "it's impossible to explain to citizens how people remain in Germany for years when another country in the union is responsible for them."
Geisleden Mayor Markus Janitzki, who knew the family since they arrived from Ukraine, described Liana as "a hardworking and beloved girl who learned German quickly and was a role model for her younger siblings."
In an interview with local media, the mother spoke about her daughter's last conversation. "Liana was speaking with her grandfather on the phone moments before she was pushed. He said her voice sounded worried." The mother, who rejected police claims of accident or suicide from the beginning, said that "she had big plans for the future. She had just started an internship at a dental clinic two months ago. This wasn't an accident."
"I'm sure he'll escape punishment," the mother said regarding the suspect's psychiatric diagnosis, "after he 'recovers' he'll live without pangs of conscience and commit more crimes, because he knows that next time he'll pretend to be mentally ill again."
