A man is said to have injured three people in Berlin with a hand grenade and a knife. One of the victims, a 61-year-old, is in mortal danger, the Berlin police said today.

A homicide commission took over the investigation into the attempted homicide late on Friday evening. The suspect initially fled, but was caught. The background is still unclear. First, the "Bild" newspaper reported on a bloody dispute.

The alleged attacker is said to have detonated the hand grenade at around 11:15 p.m. in front of the entrance to an apartment building, according to police findings. As a result, two women (42 and 48) and the 61-year-old were injured. The suspect, also 61, is said to have attacked one of the women and the man with a knife and inflicted further injuries on them. The three injured were taken to hospitals, police said.

So far it is unclear what the relationship between the attacker and the injured was, said a police spokeswoman. The investigation into the course of events and the background continued. According to the police, the alleged attacker is a Serb. The two women are also of Serbian nationality. The critically injured man comes from Bosnia-Herzegovina.