The police also disclosed that they had received an anonymous letter in January stating that the assailant, identified as Philipp F, age 35, should not be permitted to possess weapons.
The unborn baby of a woman who was seven months pregnant was among those slain in a mass shooting at a Jehovah’s Witness building in Hamburg, Germany.
Police identified the shooter as Philipp F, a 35-year-old German with no prior convictions who had been a member of the congregation for 18 months before leaving out of “ill will.”
According to the police, they obtained conflicting reports regarding whether he was excluded or left voluntarily.
They also disclosed that in January, an anonymous letter was sent to officers stating that the assailant should not be permitted to possess weapons and that he may be suffering from a mental illness.
The letter also stated that he was “enraged” with Jehovah’s Witnesses and a former employer.
After receiving the anonymous letter in February, two police officers visited the gunman’s apartment unannounced to conduct a check. However, he was “cooperative” and they did not remove his weapon.
Six people, including an unborn child, and the offender committed suicide.
The lone shooter was isolated by police when he fled to the floor above the shooting and committed suicide, according to Hamburg’s interior minister Andy Grote, who was speaking at a news conference.
During the shooting, the gunman discharged over a hundred rounds.
The assailant fired 10 shots at a parked lady before entering the building, but she escaped and called the police.
Mr. Grote described it as a “horrific crime” and “very heartless.”
“This is something we’ve never experienced,” he said.
“It was the worst crime our city has seen in recent memory,” he added.
The assault on the Jehovah’s Witnesses Kingdom Hall in the Gross Borstel neighborhood of Germany’s second-largest city was reported to the police at 9:04 p.m. local time on Thursday. Police received a total of 47 emergency reports regarding the incident.
Officials said a nearby police special operations unit’s 9:09 p.m. entry likely saved lives.
The man had a weapons license and legally possessed a semi-automatic pistol, according to Hamburg Police Chief Ralf Martin Meyer.
Officials also verified that the shooter was single and employed in Hamburg.
Before the anonymous letter, Philipp F had not been the subject of any other complaints, according to the cops.
However, according to officials, the shooter reported a possible fraud to the police, which is now being investigated by prosecutors.
Police also verified that they searched the shooter’s apartment at 12.30 a.m. on Friday, more than three hours after the shooting, and discovered an additional 15 loaded magazines and four packs of ammunition. Laptops and smartphones were also taken from the residence by the police.
According to German privacy laws, the police cannot disclose the gunman’s complete surname.
Olaf Scholz, a former Hamburg mayor and current German Chancellor, termed the murder “brutal” and “speechless.”
Mr. Scholz added that authorities “fear additional victims may succumb to their grievous wounds.”
