Apertura. Revista de innovación educativa‏

A student today opened fire during a lecture at Heidelberg university in Germany, killing a woman and injuring three other people, before shooting himself dead

por Gerardo Rymer (2022-10-26)


A student today opened fire during a lecture at Heidelberg university in Germany, killing a woman and injuring three other people, before shooting himself dead.

The 18-year-old gunman was a biology student at the university, said Siegfried Kollmar, the regional chief of police.

The suspect, a German citizen with no known police record, sent a phone message to his father shortly before the shooting which mentioned that 'people will be punished', Mr Kollmar told reporters.

The precise motive for the attack was still being investigated, but the suspect was known to have suffered from a psychological illness in the past, he added. 

The unidentified teen is believed to have been carrying several rifles in a backpack when he went on the rampage inside a lecture hall at the university in southwestern Germany.

 

Police vehicles are parked on the grounds of Heidelberg University in Heidelberg, Germany, on Monday following the shooting

Pictures showed police examining a shotgun at the scene with another weapon on the ground in front of them

Specialist SEK commando units and police officers swarmed Neuenheimer Feld, an area of the Heidelberg which consists mostly of university buildings.   

Pictures showed police examining a shotgun at the scene with a backpack and another weapon on the ground in front of them.

Mr Kollmar said the shooter's body was found outside by officers along with two firearms he had recently acquired abroad and about 100 rounds of ammunition.

Police identified the woman who was killed as a 23-year-old German. Those who suffered minor wounds were two German women and a German-Italian man.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz expressed dismay over the shooting and offered his condolences to relatives, victims and students.

'It's been reported that one student has died of her injuries,' he said.

'It tears my heart apart to learn of such news.'

Members of the SEK stand by a vehicle on the campus of Heidelberg University in Heidelberg on Monday

Police officers secure traces on the grounds of the Heidelberg University on Monday