Vieritz in Brandenburg
After 34 hours of war of nerves: police find armed man dead in the attic
A police car secures an access road to Vieritz in Brandenburg
© Cevin Dettlaff / DPA
The large-scale operation to arrest an armed man in Vieritz, Brandenburg, has ended. Police have found the man, who had barricaded himself in a house since Friday afternoon and fired several shots at police officers, dead.
After around 34 hours, a major operation is underway Police have come to an end about an armed man holed up in a house in the Havelland district.
The suspect was found by emergency services around 12:30 a.m. on Sunday night in the attic of the building in the municipality of Milower Land, said a police spokeswoman. An emergency doctor was only able to determine death. The exact circumstances of the death must now be clarified. It is still unclear how the man died.
According to police, the “highly aggressive” suspect fired several shots from and into the house on Saturday night and Saturday evening.
Emergency services in Brandenburg had no contact with the suspect
The emergency services tried in vain to establish contact with him for hours. They were finally able to get into the house in the Vieritz district. What actually happened there that night initially remained unclear, as did the shooter’s motive.
The police said the crime scene would now be secured and forensic investigations would begin. All roadblocks in the town would be lifted, but the crime scene would remain cordoned off over a large area.
In addition to the man, there was originally a child, his mother and another suspect in the house. The police who arrived on Friday afternoon supported the youth welfare office in enforcing a district court decision. Special units were also ordered to the scene due to an assumed risk to the child’s well-being.
Mother and child were brought to safety on Saturday night. The woman left the house to hand the child over to the youth welfare office. Shots were fired from inside the building. According to police, no one was injured.
One of the two men was arrested on Friday afternoon when he came out of the building armed. The Potsdam district court issued an arrest warrant and the suspect was taken to the Wriezen prison. The other, however, barricaded himself in the house until the end of the operation. The police did not reveal any details about him on Sunday night.
The situation remained unclear throughout Saturday, even though the police spoke of a static situation. Around midday there was an explosion and an armored police vehicle set off. It was still unclear hours later where the detonation came from.
As they advanced, the emergency services seized several weapons. Firearms, ammunition and other dangerous items such as a hand grenade were found on the residential property and in the house, a police spokeswoman told the German Press Agency on Saturday evening. It can be assumed that there are other firearms in the man’s possession.
The police had called on residents to stay in their homes. Some of them were worried, and the mayor of the municipality of Milower Land called for prudence. The village is located about 20 kilometers northwest of Brandenburg an der Havel.