As [reported](https://www.hessenschau.de/videos/kurzvideos/ueberwachungskamera-filmt-taeter-hier-explodiert-die-frankfurter-shisha-bar%2Cexplosion-frankfurt-120.html?utm_source=chatgpt.com) by Hessenschau, around 4:20 AM, explosive devices detonated almost simultaneously in two locations in Frankfurt — in front of the Rio café on Berger Straße and at the Truth hookah lounge on Zeil Street. Both establishments sustained serious damage, with windows blown out. No one was injured. As previously [reported](https://bb.lv/statja/chp-i-kriminal/2026/09/17/piatyi-vzryv-za-neskolko-dnei-vo-frankfurte-atakovany-kafe-i-kaliannaia) by bb.lv, the explosion near Rio was particularly powerful. Nearby establishments, including a restaurant across the street, a Sparkasse branch, and at least one parked car, were also damaged. The second device exploded just a few minutes later, a few hundred meters from the first incident — near the Truth hookah lounge. Surveillance footage captured a man in black clothing and the moment of detonation. Shortly before the explosion, he wrote the word Drogendieb — "drug thief" — in red paint on the sidewalk. ## 17-Year-Old Suspect Arrested During the operation initiated after the explosions, police arrested a 17-year-old citizen of the Netherlands not far from Berger Straße. The prosecution reported that he is to be brought before a judge to decide on a preventive measure. The investigation is being conducted by the Frankfurt criminal police with the support of the state criminal police office of Hesse. ## Five Explosions Already Investigators are checking for possible connections between the current attacks and three similar incidents that occurred a few days earlier. On September 13, explosions took place in the Frankfurt district of Sachsenhausen and in neighboring Offenbach. A bar, café, and kiosk were damaged. Following the incident in Sachsenhausen, police arrested a 15-year-old suspect, who was subsequently detained. Another detonation occurred on September 14 near an apartment building in the Bockenheim district. Thus, within a short period, there have already been **five similar explosions** in Frankfurt and its surroundings. ## "Violence as a Service" The police are considering some of these crimes in the context of a phenomenon that German law enforcement refers to as **Violence as a Service**. This refers to cases where individuals from the criminal environment are hired to carry out explosions, arson, or other acts of intimidation. Young people are often recruited for such crimes via the internet. Hesse's Minister of the Interior, Roman Posek, described the situation as "a new dimension of organized crime." According to him, the aim of such attacks is often not to cause physical harm to the victim but to intimidate members of the criminal environment. The investigation is now trying to determine whether all five episodes are connected and who might be their orchestrator. Frankfurt is facing not isolated incidents but a series of similar attacks within a few days. The arrest of the 17-year-old Dutchman provides the investigation with an important lead, but the main question remains open: are the explosions part of a single criminal campaign, and who is behind its organization.
