Kusel/Berlin/Mainz (dpa) – The search pressure was too strong in the end: after the fatal shots at two police officers in the Palatinate, the suspect, who was wanted by the public, turned himself in to the police.
The 38-year-old from the Saarland district of Neunkirchen was arrested around 13 hours after the brutal bloody crime in front of a house in Saarland’s Sulzbach by special police forces, as a police spokesman in Kaiserslautern reported on Monday evening. The suspect had previously contacted the police through a lawyer.
A short time later, a 32-year-old second suspect was arrested without resistance in the house in a residential area. The investigation should reveal the connection between him and the fatal shots at the 24-year-old police candidate and the 29-year-old chief inspector. Both men are Germans and initially did not comment on the matter. The 38-year-old should be brought before the magistrate on Tuesday.
The search measures continued, however, because it could not be ruled out that there were other accomplices. Weapons, among other things, were seized during searches. How this is related to the fact is not yet certain.
The police had previously publicly searched for the game dealer from the Neunkirchen district. According to dpa information, the investigators found the suspect’s papers at the crime scene. According to information from security circles, the man had been noticed by the police in the past for hitting the road and is said to have a gun permit.
Radio call: “They shoot”
The police candidate, who studied at the Rhineland-Palatinate Police University in the Hunsrück, and the chief inspector were shot early in the morning at around 4.20 a.m. during a traffic check on a district road in the Palatinate. According to information from security circles, the civil patrol had previously reported by radio that dead game had been found in a vehicle. Later they reported: “They’re shooting.”
The policeman is said to have fired several shots at the scene. It was initially unclear on Monday whether it was a warning shot or whether the officer injured a suspect. His colleague’s weapon was obviously not used, her pistol was still in its holster. The young woman, who was still studying at the Police University, died immediately, according to the police.
The 29-year-old chief inspector from Kusel was initially still alive, but died when the rescue workers arrived, a police spokesman reported. “He was absolutely good,” said a colleague sadly. Both victims came from Saarland.
The two police officers were on a routine trip as a civilian patrol, but wore uniforms and safety vests, a spokeswoman for the Kaiserslautern police said. The deadly shots were fired at Kreisstraße 22 in Ulmet in the Kusel district in the western Palatinate. According to what was initially known about the course of events, the officers had probably approached the vehicle closer and had started checking when the shot was fired.
Many details still unknown
The police initially did not confirm that the two police officers were shot in the head. However, the protective vests reached from the hips to the neck, so this is likely. The police assumed that an autopsy would be ordered. It was initially unclear how many shots were fired in total. There was no trace of the perpetrators’ guns – and initially not of the getaway car either. It was not yet clear in which direction the perpetrator or perpetrators escaped.
Traces were secured at the crime scene on Monday. “At the moment every stone is being turned on this street,” said the police spokeswoman. A police spokesman said that more than 50 tips from the population had already been received via the hotline alone.
BKA boss: “Incomprehensible”
The President of the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), Holger Münch, was dismayed and stunned after the fatal shots. “It is incomprehensible when police officers become the target of an attack and lose their lives while fulfilling their task of protecting the population from danger,” Münch told the editorial network Germany.
His thoughts are with the relatives of the victims and the colleagues on site. The BKA will provide “its full support” in clarifying the facts, said Münch.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) expressed his condolences to the relatives of the two police officers who were shot. What happened in Kusel depresses him a lot, Scholz wrote on Twitter on Monday evening. “My condolences to the families of the two young victims.” He also thinks of the many police officers who risk their lives every day to protect citizens. “We have to clarify the background of the fact quickly,” Scholz continued.
Rhineland-Palatinate Prime Minister Malu Dreyer and Interior Minister Roger Lewentz said they were “deeply shocked” by the fatal shots. “Our thoughts are with the relatives,” said a statement from the two SPD politicians in Mainz. The Prime Minister ordered mourning flags in the country. Black ribbons are provided for all patrol cars in the country. Other federal states also followed this step for their police officers.
Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) said: “Regardless of the motive behind the crime, this crime is reminiscent of an execution and it shows that police officers risk their lives every day for our security.”