A 34-year-old woman and the man who attacked her and other passengers on board a Swiss train have died from their injuries.
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Police said on Sunday that they are searching for a possible motive for the attacks but have received no indications that the suspect, a 27-year-old man, had any ties to extremist groups.
Five other people were injured in the attack, including one who had been on the platform and rushed in to pull out the attacker out of the train. Forensic scientists are analysing the liquid he used.
The attack occurred on a train traveling between the towns of Buchs and Sennwald in northeast Switzerland on Saturday, when the perpetrator spilled out flammable liquid and set it on fire before proceeding to stab passengers.
Among those hurt was a 17-year-old boy, a 50-year-old man, three women aged 17, 34 and 43, and a 6-year-old child. Police said the woman also succumbed to her injuries earlier on Sunday.
St. Gallen police said the motive was not clear.
“Terrorism is not our main theory”, police spokesman Bruno Metzger told AFP, adding that “other motives” figured far higher on the list, but refused to give further information.
According to the statement, the Swiss authority has not found any criminal record of the attacker.
Seven people including the suspect were wounded in the Saturday afternoon attack.
Armed with a knife, the man poured flammable liquids that caught fire on the train, police in the canton of St. Gallen said in a statement.
But they have searched his home, located in a canton neighbouring Saint Gallen.
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Salez station is closed while police carry out further investigations. Some 90 rescue workers had taken part in Saturday’s operation, including police, firefighters, ambulances and three rescue helicopters, police said.
