UPDATED, 11:41 a.m. ET: A spokesman for the Cologne police department reports that Police Chief Wolfgang Albers has been dismissed following allegations of mob sex attacks and muggings that took place throughout the city on New Year's Eve, according to CNN.
German authorities have identified 18 of the 31 suspects linked to crimes committed in Cologne on New Year's Eve as asylum seekers, who have now been linked to similar incidents on the same date in other cities across Europe.
"Of the 31 suspects whose names are known, 18 have asylum seeker status," interior ministry spokesman Tobias Plate told reporters on Friday, citing federal police figures, according to BBC News.
The Cologne suspects include nine Algerians, eight Moroccans, five Iranians and four Syrians, two Germans and one each from Iraq, Serbia and the U.S., Plate noted.
Other European cities had similar attacks the same night, but the Cologne attacks, which had 121 criminal complaints, including two alleged rapes, were the most prominent and publicized, reported CNN. However, officials didn't want to publicize the incident initially due to its "politically awkward" nature.
Initial reports indicated that the purpose of the attacks was to steal from passengers, while the assault was secondary. However, authorities close to the investigation say those priorities were actually reversed.
"For the mostly Arabic offenders, sexual assault was the priority, or, to express it from their point of view, their sexual amusement was the priority. A group of men would encircle a female victim, close the loop, and then start groping the woman," said an official speaking on the condition of anonymity, according to DW.
Other cities that reported such cases include Zurich, Switzerland, where six women reported being "robbed from one side, [while] being groped ... on the other side" by groups of men with "dark skin," as well as Helsinki, Finland, where police reported receiving reports of "widespread sexual harassment."
In response to these attacks, German Justice Minister Heiko Maas warned that if anyone seeking asylum is convicted of such crimes, then they would be deported.
"The law allows for people to be deported during asylum proceedings if they're sentenced to a year or more in prison, and that's possible with sexual offenses," Maas said.
