Germany shooting: Six dead after gunman opens fire in Rot am See

Police secure the area following a shooting in Bahnhoftrasse, Rot am See: REUTERS
Police secure the area following a shooting in Bahnhoftrasse, Rot am See: REUTERS

Six people have been killed and several injured in a shooting in southwestern Germany.

Police said a suspect had been arrested following the attack at a restaurant in the town of Rot am See at 12.45pm.

Some of the victims belong to the same family, spokesman Rudolf Biehlmaier told German broadcaster n-tv.

“According to my information, there were six dead and several injured,” he said.

“We are working on the assumption that this was a single attacker.”

The suspect is believed to be a German male but has not yet been identified by the authorities. Police said the suspect knew one or more of the victims.

A major operation involving the medical rescue services was launched near the train station in Bahnhofstrasse.

“Several injuries, probably dead in a building,” announced the local police force based in the city of Aalen, in the federal state of Baden-Württemberg.

“According to initial findings, there is a relationship [between the suspect and victims]. Currently no indication of further perpetrators.”

There was no suggestion of a terrorist motive and police asked the public to “refrain from speculation”.

It follows the recent high-profile shooting at a synagogue in Halle, central Germany, by a suspected neo-Nazi.

Rot am See, with a population of over 5,000, is located about 170km northwest of Munich.

Additional reporting by Associated Press