Police search rural Bavaria after finding body – DW – 14.07.2024

Bavarian police are searching for a male suspect who is believed to have killed an elderly man on Saturday who was found dead in the lakeside town of Herrsching am Ammersee near Munich.

“The investigation points to a violent crime,” a police spokesman said early Saturday morning as a major search operation involving sniffer dogs and divers was launched.

Herrsching is a picturesque town on the banks of the Ammer River in Bavaria, just a short drive southwest of Munich. The criminal investigation department based in the nearby city of Fürstenfeldbruck led the investigation.

Police search for male suspect with helicopters, dogs and divers

Police were not called to the scene until late Friday evening after the victim’s wife managed to escape to a neighbor’s house and alert the authorities.

Officers found the man seriously injured upon arrival and paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene, police said in a statement..

“Initial investigations revealed that an unknown male person fled the crime scene on foot at around 9:20 p.m. The police searched the crime scene with a large contingent until the early hours of the morning. In addition to numerous local patrol cars, police helicopters, federal police vehicles and several dog teams were also deployed,” the police said.

Authorities said the suspect was between 6’11” and 6’3″ tall. At the time of the crime, he was wearing light-colored pants and a dark blue hoodie, a red backpack, and green and yellow gloves. Potential witnesses were asked to contact police if they saw him.

In an update released Saturday evening, investigators said that “the search for the suspect continues at high intensity,” but gave no indication of an arrest or further lead.

In addition, divers were also deployed “to search relevant areas on the shore of Lake Ammersee for evidence,” it said.

Around 30 officers are working on the case, the police announced on Saturday evening. The securing of evidence at the crime scene is also ongoing.

No information on possible motive or murder weapon

“Further questions, such as a possible motive for the crime or the means used to commit the crime, cannot currently be answered for investigative reasons,” the police said in a statement.

The victim’s body was taken to a facility in nearby Munich for an autopsy, investigators said.

msh/rm (dpa)

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