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Mugshot of the suspect

Photo: Police Headquarters Frankfurt am Main

The hand grenade, which was found in a busy S-Bahn and U-Bahn station in downtown Frankfurt am Main, was apparently potentially dangerous. "The investigations have shown that there was an explosive device in the hand grenade – so the device was functional," said a police spokesman.

But he also emphasized that the grenade had been secured, "the pin was still inside." The grenade is now being further investigated. An expert opinion is still pending. There are no indications of an attempted attack or political background at the moment, the spokesman said. Meanwhile, the search is underway for a suspect who had been filmed by surveillance cameras. "The background is still unclear." And: "We are investigating in all directions."

Passers-by spotted suspicious object

The hand grenade had been seized on Tuesday morning in the Hauptwache station. Earlier, several passers-by had alerted the police after spotting a suspicious object on the floor on a wall.

The officers are looking for a suspect. In particular, the evaluation of the recordings from security cameras showed "that at around 04:18 a.m., an unknown male person was suspiciously moving in the B and C levels of the main police station." At 04:36 a.m., the unknown man placed the hand grenade in the area of the B level and then fled on foot in the direction of Eschenheimer Tor.

Police follow up on clues

Investigators are also looking for other possible witnesses via social media and set up a phone number for clues a few hours after the find. "We have received some clues, which we are now following," said the spokesman.

Located on Frankfurt's Zeil shopping street, the Hauptwache underground station is a hub for public transport. It is located at the central S-Bahn tunnel under Frankfurt, through which almost all S-Bahn lines pass. Several subway lines also serve the Hauptwache station, which consists of a total of four levels.

Because the station was largely cordoned off, S-Bahn and U-Bahn trains could not stop there during the morning rush hour, but had to pass through.

bbr/dpa