The swift action of the police probably prevented even more bloodshed during the massacre of a community meeting of Jehovah’s Witnesses in Hamburg. But the hatred with which the alleged perpetrator killed seven people and himself did not come out of the blue.
In January, an anonymous whistleblower drew the attention of gun authorities to the “particular anger toward religious adherents, especially toward Jehovah’s Witnesses,” according to police chief Ralf Martin Meyer. Also: Again, the alleged perpetrator is a sniper.
The man was on the authorities’ radar
Just a month before the notice, the 35-year-old had received the gun owner’s license and purchased a semi-automatic pistol. January’s tipster is obviously concerned, fears a mental illness, which the man says is untreatable. And given the gun ownership, he probably thinks it’s necessary to warn the authorities about him – the man will be on the radar at the latest. The assassin revealed a lot about himself and his thoughts on the Internet. For example, the perpetrator’s website shows that he had an intensive relationship with God and Jesus Christ.
No doubt about reliability
The gun authority had already checked the reliability of the man from Memmingen in the Allgäu when the gun owner’s license was issued, but routinely checked the files of the police, the constitution and the state protection. But there was no doubt about the later shooter’s reliability, says Meyer.
After the tip, two officers from the weapons authority visited him on February 7 – unannounced – at his apartment in Altona. “He cooperated, was willing to provide information, it was an open conversation.” Neither the weapon nor the safe in which it was kept gave cause for complaint, “except for a trifle, for there was a projectile hovering over the safe”. says the chief of police.
No evidence of mental illness
The overall circumstances would not have given officials any indications “that could indicate mental illness”. They talked about mundane things like the home furnishings “and went out at the end of the day and gave him a verbal warning for the minor infraction”. The 35-year-old apologized, “of course he was embarrassed too”.
Gun ownership: question of personal reliability difficult
At that point, the man disappeared from the authorities’ radar again, until this Thursday, until the act of violence at the community meeting, which Hamburg’s Senator of the Interior Andy Grote (SPD) described a day later as “the worst crime in the world”. recent history of our city”. history”. The day after, both the senator and his police chief refer to the gun law, which also binds the hands of the authorities.
Even if the two weapons authority officials had personally convinced themselves and had no doubts about the 35-year-old’s trustworthiness, “we need to take another critical look at the legal processes and the requirements for further action,” says Meyer. An anonymous letter is not sufficient to revoke the owner’s permit.
The issue of personal trustworthiness and eligibility related to gun ownership “has been on our minds for some time, especially at the legislative level,” says Grote. “And then the question: are we well positioned to check applicants for mental illnesses, abnormalities, instabilities?” It is not for nothing that the federal government has submitted a bill that provides for this as standard. However, there is still resistance to the draft in the deliberations in the federal public services.
Mental illness difficult to detect
The whole discussion is not new: the case is reminiscent of the attack in Hanau, where a mentally ill right-wing extremist, who legally owned weapons as a sniper, killed nine people with a migration background in 2020 for racist motives. He then shot his mother and then committed suicide.
Although the later killer harbored extremist thoughts and delusions, which also emerged from letters he wrote to official authorities, he was not forbidden to own a weapon. After the attack, the then Interior Minister Horst Seehofer (CSU) campaigned for a reform of the gun law, so that the mentally ill would no longer have access to guns. However, he was unable to comment on this point at the time, also because of complex questions about data protection and medical confidentiality.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
