Cologne Police President Jurgen Mathies has set up a working group to deal with the police operation on New Year's Eve. Among other things, it should be clarified why many North Africans have come to Cologne almost simultaneously.
Mathies explained in Cologne on Wednesday. He said the working group should examine whether there is evidence of links between the groups of young men and whether they were colluding. For this purpose, the existing personnel data would be reviewed within the scope of legal possibilities, the police chief further explained. This will take considerable time, he said.
Eliminate speculation
"With this knowledge, we want to dispel speculation or prove conjecture," Mathies said. He said the findings will be used in operational planning for future major events. In addition, it should be examined whether this results in investigative leads for the "New Year's Investigation Group," which was set up after the mass thefts and sexual assaults on New Year's Eve in 2015.
In response to the attacks a year ago, Cologne police were deployed with a large contingent at the turn of the year 2016/2017. Round 1.000 young men from the North African region were checked and in some cases detained. The operation sparked a debate about racial profiling, but the police also earned praise from politicians and society at large.