Hamburg perpetrator was convicted of fraud – farewell letter speaks of “extended suicide”

The suspected shooter in Hamburg and Eningen under Achalm was no stranger to the judiciary. The Reutlingen district court sentenced the 68-year-old from Baden-Württemberg to a total prison sentence of two years and five months in November last year. The verdict was not final because of the man's appeal, as a spokesman for the Tübingen regional court announced.

The 68-year-old was found dead in a hotel room in the Elbphilharmonie on Tuesday. He is said to have killed his wife and father-in-law before shooting two people in Hamburg's Hafencity. The bodies of his family members were discovered in a house in Eningen unter Achalm near Reutlingen.

On Tuesday morning, a man alerted the Hamburg police around 9:00 a.m. after an unknown perpetrator shot him. The emergency services found the 40-year-old employee of a security company on a sidewalk near the Elbphilharmonie.

Shortly afterwards, they discovered a 39-year-old woman in the underground car park with life-threatening injuries. Rescue workers took her and the 40-year-old to the hospital. The woman's life is now no longer in danger and, according to the police, the man's condition is stable, they said in the evening.

The police assume that the alleged perpetrator's motive could be family-related. Several media outlets reported on a farewell letter from the 68-year-old that was found in the mailboxes of a house near the Elbphilharmonie. The shooter's son and daughter-in-law are said to live there.

In the letter, which is also available to the German Press Agency, the man justifies his act with the fact that his son took over his company, which was unfavorable for the rest of the family. “Since I will only receive a very small pension, I have committed an extended suicide.” The police initially did not comment on the letter.

According to the Reutlingen police, the dead found in Eningen unter Achalm were the suspect's 65-year-old wife and 90-year-old father-in-law. The two dead people were taken out of the apartment building by an undertaker in the evening. There is not a word about these acts in the farewell letter found in Hamburg. Only the confession of an “extended suicide” could refer to this.

During the search to find the injured, the Hamburg police received information that the suspect was staying in a hotel room at the Elbphilharmonie. A few minutes before the emergency services finally found the body of the 68-year-old suspect, the lifeless bodies of his family members were discovered in Eningen unter Achalm.

A hearing on the 68-year-old's appeal against his conviction for fraud began at the Tübingen regional court on October 7th. However, it was suspended due to further necessary investigations, as the regional court spokesman further announced. A new date has not been set. After the defendant's death, the proceedings will probably be discontinued by order.

The man had already been legally sentenced to two months in prison for intentionally driving without a license.

At the house in Eningen unter Achalm, where the two bodies of the suspected perpetrator's wife and father-in-law were found the day before, there is no longer any evidence of the crime. The police have not cordoned off the street or building, and there are no flowers to commemorate the two dead. Neighbors declined to comment. The police in Reutlingen referred to the responsibility of the Hamburg investigative authorities.

The Hamburg homicide squad is intensively investigating the background to the crime. It was said that she was in contact with investigators in Baden-Württemberg. However, no further details were provided until the afternoon.

The Elbphilharmonie was partially evacuated on Tuesday afternoon. Emergency services escorted guests from the observation deck and out of the building's hotel. Several children were also on site; the police spoke of a mid-double-digit number. The police spokesman said they were looked after by police in the building.

At the time of the operation, a school concert was taking place in the small hall of the concert hall. After the police operation ended, the Elbphilharmonie resumed normal operations. “The events on Tuesday evening could take place as usual,” explained a press spokesman. It was said that there were no longer any restrictions on the viewing platform, the so-called plaza, and in the concert area. The five-star hotel is located on the upper floors of the building.

On Tuesday afternoon, a small car with a Reutlingen license plate was towed from the Elbphilharmonie underground car park. In addition, a dark vehicle - also with a Reutlingen license plate - was cordoned off by police tape.