3 Syrians aid German police in capturing man in bomb plot

Associated Press

BERLIN

A Syrian man wanted after being accused of preparing a bombing attack was apprehended by three of his countrymen, who overpowered him, tied him up in their apartment, and then alerted police, authorities said Monday.

The overnight arrest of Jaber Albakr ended a nearly two-day nationwide search for the 22-year-old that German authorities launched after finding several pounds of explosives and components hidden inside an apartment in the eastern city of Chemnitz on Saturday.

Albakr arrived in Germany amid a flood of 890,000 asylum-seekers last year. Saxony criminal police chief Joerg Michaelis said that the three Syrians who captured him recognized the suspect from wanted posters police posted online as part of the manhunt.

After taking him to their apartment late Sunday, two of the Syrians bound and held Albakr while the third brought a mobile-phone photo of Albakr to a local police station, leading to the arrest early Monday, Michaelis said.

Prosecutors and police said Monday that they considered Albakr an extremist with likely links to the Islamic State group.