Shooting in Heidelberg: German police say attacker obtained weapons in Austria | News Today

The 18-year-old shooter who opened fire at the University of Heidelbergkilling one person and injuring three others before committing suicide, had bought about three weapons in Austria a week ago, German police said on Wednesday.

Two of these weapons were seized on the spot, as well as approximately 150 cartridges.

The third weapon, a rifle, was found by Austrian police in a room that the man, who was not identified by name in accordance with German privacy rules, had rented while in Austria, the police said. Heidelberg police in a statement.

Police say the German – who was a university biology student – bought the two weapons used in the attack from an arms dealer and the third from a private individual, both in Austria.

The precise motive for the attack is still under investigation, but the suspect was known to have suffered from a psychological illness in the past.

“It cannot be excluded that a mental illness of the suspect may have been the cause of the crime,” the police statement said.

Investigators are also following indications that the suspect was a former member of a far-right party, which he left in 2019, when he was still a minor.

Police identified the slain woman as a 23-year-old German woman.

Those who suffered minor injuries were two German women, aged 19 and 20, and a 20-year-old German-Italian man.

The shooting sparked a massive police response, with more than 400 officers dispatched to the scene.

Heidelberg, home to one of Germany’s best-known universities, is located south of Frankfurt and has a population of around 160,000.