The most important questions and answers about the police operation and the kidnapping case.
It’s rare for police officers to shoot suspects, and it’s even rarer for someone to die. Both happened in Wallisellen.
On Wednesday evening, the police in Wallisellen carried out a large-scale operation to arrest the suspect in a kidnapping case. But the arrest operation fails.
The man draws his gun and a shootout ensues with the police. The suspected kidnapper first shoots his companion before he himself is hit and killed by at least one bullet from a police officer’s gun.
New details in the kidnapping case will become known on Friday: There is said to have been a second person involved who is currently in the custody of the Zurich public prosecutor’s office. In addition, the identity of the kidnapping victim is revealed. However, the publication of this information by the media is not possible due to a court intervention.
Despite these new developments, the investigation is still in its infancy. Many questions about the kidnapping and the shooting in Wallisellen are therefore still unanswered. What is known – and what remains unclear.
The kidnapping case is at the center of the investigation. According to the police and public prosecutor, the 38-year-old German is suspected of kidnapping a man for several hours on March 31 in the canton of Zurich. He allegedly threatened the victim with a gun. After a few hours, however, he let the kidnapping victim go.
Another man, a 34-year-old Swiss man, was arrested in connection with the kidnapping. His arrest took place in a neighboring canton and he is now in the custody of the Zurich authorities. This was announced by the Zurich public prosecutor’s office on Friday. It is the presumption of innocence.
The reason for the kidnapping remains unanswered, as does the question of what clues the police found on the trail of the 38-year-old.
This section of text had to be removed due to a court intervention.
So far, it is known that the suspected kidnapper was a 38-year-old German who lived in Switzerland. He has not yet made an appearance in the canton of Zurich. However, he had a soft spot for guns. The police found several weapons and ammunition during a house search in an apartment in Wallisellen. according to the Tamedia newspapers the man was also active in a sports shooting club in Volketswil. Pictures and videos of the group show militarily equipped men engaged in tactical shooting. There are also indications of connections to the scene of conspiracy theorists and corona deniers.
The public prosecutor’s office has launched an investigation into intentional killing and kidnapping against the man. Since he died in the shooting, there will be no charges and a subsequent trial in his case. The investigation will instead be closed after the investigation is completed.
According to the public prosecutor’s office, the companion who was killed is a 28-year-old Swiss woman residing in Switzerland. It should be the girlfriend of the alleged kidnapper. It is now clear why the woman lost her life. According to the report by the Institute for Forensic Medicine at the University of Zurich and the Forensic Institute in Zurich, the 28-year-old woman died from a shot from the 38-year-old German’s gun.
As the public prosecutor announced on Thursday, they have opened proceedings against the police officers involved. This corresponds to the standard procedure in such cases. In the case of a killing by a police officer, the public prosecutor’s office must clarify whether the firing of the shot was proportionate. In general, the use of firearms is only permitted if police officers themselves are threatened with life and limb, i.e. if they are acting in self-defense. The pistol can also be used when the life and limb of third parties is threatened and the police are thus providing self-defense assistance to others. It is rare for police officers to take up arms.
The canton police did not provide any information on this. One does not comment on ongoing proceedings, according to the media office. She only said that the police officers concerned received psychological support.
The crime scene is in the Zwicky area in the Zurich suburb of Wallisellen. The shooting took place in the parking lot in front of the residential towers of the Waldhaus Neuguet housing estate. The apartment of the alleged kidnapper, where the police seized weapons and ammunition, is also located in this settlement. Pictures from the night of the crime show brightly lit windows on the 14th floor, where neighbors say the apartment is located. The settlement itself is on a former industrial site right on the border with Dübendorf.