A man angry with Christians reading Bible verses with a megaphone on their boat off the German shores of Lake Constance rammed his boat into theirs three times, causing one of them to fall overboard, slightly injuring his leg.
The six Christians, ages 16 to 23, were reading gospel passages near Friedrichshafen Lido beach off the northern shore of Lake Constance, southern Germany, the afternoon of July 12.
Witnesses said the 37-year-old, unidentified assailant several times directed his large inflatable boat with a rigid hull at the young man who fell into the water, ultimately swerving around him each time.
The ramming cracked the hull of the Christians’ rented boat, resulting in it taking in water.
“According to initial findings, the suspect drove several times towards the young man in the water and only turned away at the last moment,” according to a Friedrichshafen water police press statement. “The victims called the water police via emergency call. The suspect drove back towards land and was located by a water police car patrol.”
At the same time, a police boat arrived as the Christians made their way back to return their rented boat.
The suspect was possibly under the influence of alcohol, according to the police statement, adding, “After consultation with the responsible judicial emergency service, blood samples were taken from the accused.”
Water police discovered two rifles in a storage room belonging to the suspect and confiscated them.
“The suspect must now answer for dangerous interference with shipping traffic, endangering shipping traffic, dangerous bodily harm and other offenses,” the police stated. “The water police investigation is still ongoing.”
No further details were disclosed about the young people or which church or ministry they represented. Lake Constance, which also borders Austria and Switzerland, lies in a region with a well-documented history of Christian witness, including numerous church buildings and 300 monasteries.
PressPortal, representing media for the Friedrichshafen water police, called the incident “unusual” and a “dangerous interference with shipping traffic in the sea area in front of the outdoor pool in Friedrichshafen.”
