Swiss rave shooting ‘lone perpetrator’ handed himself in to police
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Police stand near the site of a deadly shooting at a rave party, according to the police, at Schachen in Aarau, Switzerland.
PHOTO: REUTERS
- A 43-year-old Swiss man admitted to shooting at a rave in Aarau, killing one and injuring six, and was arrested after handing himself in to police.
- Police found an AK-74 assault rifle and two pistols in his car; he fired over 40 shots indiscriminately into the crowd and at a vehicle.
- Authorities found no signs of extremist motives but suggested possible mental health issues; the victim was a 22-year-old Italian woman, and two injured remain hospitalised.
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ZURICH - The suspect in a shooting that killed one person and injured six others at a rave party in Aarau, northern Switzerland, at the weekend handed himself in and admitted responsibility for the attack, Swiss police said on Sept 2.
The 43-year-old Swiss man was arrested on Aug 31, a day after the shooting.
In a press conference on Sept 2, the commander of Aargau cantonal police said there was no indication anyone else had been involved.
“We can say with near certainty that the arrested man is the person who shot at the rave partygoers on Sunday,” Michael Leupold said.
“We therefore assume, with a high degree of certainty, that the shooting was the act of one individual — a lone perpetrator.”
Police had been seeking to trace the man and his vehicle when he went to a police station in Delemont, about 53km away from Aarau in his home canton of Jura, and said he was responsible.
The man has not been named, in accordance with Swiss law.
Police found three weapons in his car: an AK-74 Kalashnikov assault rifle and two pistols. Investigators said the assault rifle and one of the pistols had been fired during the attack.
Police said the man drove to the venue, and fired more than 40 shots indiscriminately into the crowd of more than 100 people.
He then returned to the parking lot where he fired several shots from a pistol including at a vehicle that was driving away.
A 22-year-old Italian woman was killed in the shooting, while six other people were injured. Two remain in hospital, where their condition was said to be improving.
Prosecutors said there were indications the suspect may have mental health issues. Police said there was no evidence of an ideological or extremist motive. REUTERS
