Italy car ramming driver charged with violence, not terrorism

Blood is seen next to a destroyed car on a street of Modena, Italy, Saturday, May 16, 2026.

A man with a history of mental health problems who rammed his car into eight people in Modena has been charged with “multiple acts of violence” but not terrorism, Italian media reported Tuesday.

No one died in Saturday’s incident involving the 31-year-old Italian driver of Moroccan heritage but eight people were wounded.

The interior ministry had pointed to a “psychiatric” element in the actions of Salim el Koudri, who had been treated for a schizoid personality disorder.

Lawyer Fausto Gianelli told AFP ahead of the publication of the charges that prosecutors were not seeking “either the aggravating circumstance of terrorism nor premeditation”,

But Italian media reported the investigating judge said there was no evidence to suggest the act was a result of his mental health problems.

Nor is there, at this stage, any indication that the driver was unable to understand or control his actions.

The judge ordered the driver be placed under observation, “with a possible transfer to specialized facilities”, according to media reports.

Four people were seriously wounded, including a woman who had to have both legs amputated. The car stopped only after crashing into a shop window.

The driver tried to flee but was chased and cornered by four passers-by. He then pulled a knife and injured one of them.

Regional health officials said Tuesday that another victim, aged 55, had regained consciousness, while a 53-year-old woman remained in a serious but stable condition.

The ramming initially raised fears of a terrorist attack, but Italy’s interior minister said Sunday that it appeared that the nature of the suspect’s actions was of “a psychiatric nature”.

The unemployed economics graduate living near the northern city had previously been treated for mental illness.