North Rhine-Westphalia
Incident in Duisburg: Police officer shoots attacker armed with a knife
A blue light shines on the roof of a police car
© Friso Gentsch / DPA
In Duisburg, a police officer shot dead an attacker armed with a knife. First, the police officer tried to incapacitate the man with an electric shock device.
A police officer shot dead an attacker armed with a knife in Duisburg, North Rhine-Westphalia. Officials were called to an operation in an apartment building on Thursday, informed the police and prosecutors. Paramedics from the fire brigade had asked the emergency services for support because a man was to be admitted to a psychiatric clinic.
In the stairwell, the police officers then met the 56-year-old, who is said to have attacked her with a knife.
Stun device used first, then gun
An officer first tried to stop the attacker with an electric shock device, NRW Interior Minister Herbert Reul (CDU) reported unscheduled to the Interior Committee of the state parliament in Düsseldorf.
When this didn’t work, the officer fired a shot from his service weapon. The shot was fatal. A police spokesman in Duisburg confirmed the incident. The attacker’s identity is known.
Further details about the exact circumstances of the crime on Thursday were not initially known. They are currently working with the public prosecutor’s office on a press release with further information, it said. For reasons of neutrality, the Düsseldorf police took over the further investigations. The public prosecutor’s office in Duisburg ordered the establishment of a murder commission.