Milower Land
Weapons found during large-scale operation: man “highly aggressive”
A special police task force is preparing for the operation. photo
© Cevin Dettlaff/TNN/dpa
The police and special forces have been on duty in Milower Land for more than 24 hours. She surrounded a house where a man was holed up. But after shots were fired, the situation remained confusing.
Shots from a residential building, an armed man who barricaded himself inside, an arrest and a child who is handed over to the youth welfare office: a large-scale operation has been going on since Friday afternoon Police in the community of Milower Land in Brandenburg are on tenterhooks.
As they approached the house, police were able to seize several weapons. Firearms, ammunition and other dangerous items were discovered on the residential property and in the house. Among them was a hand grenade, a spokeswoman for the Brandenburg police told the German Press Agency in the evening. It can be assumed that there are other firearms in the man’s possession.
The police have not yet been able to overpower the man. After further shots were fired in the house in the evening, officers moved into the building. Special forces are deployed in and around the house. “The suspect is a highly aggressive person,” said the police spokeswoman. Access therefore requires further preparation. The safety of the police officers is the top priority.
The suspect, another man and a child with his mother were in the house on Friday when the emergency services arrived at 1:45 p.m. The police arrived with a large contingent to enforce a district court order and hand the child over to the youth welfare office. Numerous details are currently unclear – such as how the people involved relate to each other.
That night the mother came out of the house and handed the child over to the youth welfare office. Previously, late on Friday afternoon, one of the two men came out of the house with a gun and was overpowered and arrested by police. According to a spokeswoman for the West Police Department, no one was injured.
Police have no contact with suspect
The other man continued to stay in the building and is said to have shot at the police officers in front of the house. He barricaded himself in the building and then fired several shots again in the afternoon, police spokesman Daniel Keip said. The police had no contact with the suspect. The officials continued to try to establish contact, the spokesman said.
A dpa reporter reported a detonation in front of the house at midday. An armored vehicle started moving towards the building.
Police urged residents to stay in their homes. The mayor of the municipality of Milower Land called for prudence. The community has around 4,400 inhabitants, and around 300 live in the Vieritz district. The village is located 20 kilometers northwest of Brandenburg an der Havel.
With their efforts, the police supported the youth welfare office in enforcing a district court decision. Special units were also deployed to the scene due to an assumed risk to the child’s well-being. They were supported by police officers from Berlin, Brandenburg and Saxony-Anhalt. The exact background to the incident was still unclear on Saturday. A police spokesman initially did not want to provide any details about the armed man.
Citizens should stay at home
Residents expressed concern. “You don’t know how it will turn out,” said 33-year-old Harry Meier to the dpa. Residents reported family disputes in the affected residential building. Meier lives on the outskirts of town, outside the cordoned off area. The affected residential building is located roughly in the middle of the village, he described. On the instructions of the police, citizens should remain in their homes for the duration of the operation. Residents who come from outside have not been allowed into their houses since the police operation.
Mayor Felix Menzel called on people not to take part in speculation on the Internet. “That’s no use, people should please wait,” said Menzel on Saturday morning in the “Märkische Allgemeine Zeitung”. “I hope that no one is injured – neither the public nor the emergency services.” The situation is worrying and extraordinary. “Hopefully everyone keeps their nerve.”