Et is every police officer’s nightmare: during a routine check on the open road, two young officers were shot dead early Monday morning. At around 4:20 a.m. someone opened fire on them on a county road in the rural far west of Rhineland-Palatinate. The officers had previously radioed that they would be checking a vehicle. According to media reports, they are said to have found dead wild animals in the trunk. According to a police spokesman, the officials called out “There will be a shot.”
But the support came too late. The 24-year-old police officer, a student at the police college, died before her colleagues arrived, and the 29-year-old officer shortly afterwards. According to the “Bild” newspaper, they are said to have been shot in the head. The officers were traveling in an unmarked vehicle but were wearing uniforms.
After first investigation, two suspects in Saarland Sulzbach were arrested on Monday night, as a police spokeswoman of the German Press Agency said. One of the men had previously been advertised to public search. According to a “mirror” report, the 38-year-old should operate a wildlife trade and a bakery in the area.
The officers had been searching for the man at high pressure. Police helicopters, tracking dogs and special police forces were also used. According to information from the German Press Agency, the suspect was already known to the police. Citing security circles, it was said that the man had been noticed in the past for hit and run and had a gun license.
The second suspect, a 32-year-old, was arrested shortly afterwards. The search measures were still ongoing because it could not be ruled out that there were other accomplices.
Are there other suspects?
The police asked the population in the Kusel district on Monday not to pick up any hitchhikers. This was a precautionary measure – after all, the officers assumed that the perpetrator or perpetrators had or had a vehicle. Several roadblocks have been set up at the site. The crime scene is in a sparsely populated area not far from the Baumholder military training area and near the Saarland. There were extensive manhunts in both federal states. The Kaiserslautern police asked witnesses who saw something suspicious or knew where the suspect was to call the police. According to a police spokesman, more than 50 tips from the population were received by the afternoon.
The killings sparked national outrage. Regardless of which motive is based, the act remembers a “execution,” said Federal Minister of Interior Nancy Faeser (SPD). The act show “that police officers risk their lives every day for our safety.” The Rhineland-Palatian Prime Minister Malu Dreyer and National Minister of Prime Roger Lewentz showed “deeply shocked” over the deadly shots. “Our thoughts are with the relatives and colleagues of the Rhineland-Palatinate police. The act is appalling. We are very upset that two young people lost their lives on duty,” said the two SPD politicians. Dreyer ordered mourning flags to be displayed (half-mast) in the country. Saarland Prime Minister Tobias Hans (CDU) was also “deeply shaken” and “absolutely stunned”. He also ordered a mourning flag to be raised. According to him, the two officers killed came from Saarland.
Rhineland-Palatinate, Kusel: Police officers go to the scene where two police officers were fatally injured by shots during a traffic check.
:
Image: dpa
According to Lewentz, resistance, threats and physical attacks against police officers have been increasing in Rhineland-Palatinate for years. In 2019, 1,582 violent crimes against police officers were registered, in 2020 there were already 1,715, said Lewentz on Monday. In the first quarter of 2021, 1,164 such acts had already been counted, but there were no more recent figures.
The boss of the German Police Union, Rainer Wendt said on Monday, most of the attacks on emergency workers did not take place in terrorist attacks, football or demonstrations, but with more than 80 percent in daily grinding service in apparently harmless occasions. Despite all the protection and training, there are situations in which damage cannot be avoided. “Simply because the perpetrators are determined to do anything,” said Wendt.
The head of the police union in Rhineland-Palatinate, Sabrina Kunz, was also dismayed by the incident. “Our deepest condolences go to the relatives,” said Kunz. She appealed to the citizens of the Kaiserslautern area to refrain from gatherings against the Corona measures on Monday, out of consideration for the terrible act and the investigations for which many police forces would be needed. The Kusel district administration also asked the population to refrain from “Monday walks”. The police forces are bound by the search.