Cologne – – September 11, 2026 -- German police have arrested 48-year-old Daniel V., the man suspected of orchestrating a series of sabotage attacks on power substations across North Rhine-Westphalia, after he tried to evade a traffic checkpoint on foot near Weisweiler. Authorities had been searching for the suspect for several days; his name appeared on letters claiming responsibility for the attacks.
Suspect Attempts to Flee Checkpoint Near Weisweiler Before Capture
Police confirmed the arrest followed an attempt by the suspect to bypass a routine traffic control on foot in the Weisweiler area, ending a multi-day manhunt tied to the substation sabotage incidents.
Interior Minister Reul Links Dormagen Sabotage Attempt to Broader Grid Threats
NRW Interior Minister Herbert Reul discussed the sabotage attempt at the Dormagen substation with WDR, addressing this incident alongside other recent attacks on the region's power supply infrastructure and the ongoing search for the suspect named in the claim letters.
NRW Premier Wüst Warns Bergheim Substation Attack Threatens Public Safety
Commenting on the attack targeting the substation in Bergheim near Cologne, NRW Premier Hendrik Wüst told WDR: "Attacks on our critical infrastructure are attacks on the life of us all, because critical infrastructure is exactly what we rely on every day."
Left Party's Bartsch Cites Leipzig Drone Incident in Escalation Warning
Separately, Left Party politician Dietmar Bartsch warned of rising tensions with Russia, pointing to a drone incident at Leipzig Airport as evidence that the security situation in Germany has become "very, very serious."