Six people, all staff members of a mothers and children centre in Stade, north of Hamburg, were fatally shot by a suspect seen in a custody dispute over his infant daughter, German police say.
The violent act took place at a youth welfare facility on Dankerstrasse on Monday afternoon, with shots reported around 12:10 local time (10:10 GMT). Four women and two men were killed on site, and a sixth person later died in hospital from injuries sustained during the shooting. The baby and her mother were present in the office but escaped harm.
The suspect is a 45‑year‑old Turkish national born in Germany who lives in Hanover. According to the police chief of Lünenburg, he had an appointment at the centre to discuss custody of his daughter and had a history of threats but had not been deemed particularly violent. He did not possess a firearms licence.
Three people, including the suspect, were detained by police after the gunman fled the scene in a car driven by a woman. Authorities shot the vehicle and arrested the occupants, after which they were taken into custody. Police say no further threat to the public remains.
Lower Saxony’s Interior Minister Daniela Behrens described the incident as “a cold‑blooded act with no political or economic motive.”
Stade, a town of about 50,000 people, lies roughly 30 km (19 miles) west of Hamburg. Children attending local daycare and primary schools were collected by their parents after the shooting, and large police and emergency forces were deployed to the area.
