JohnCenaFan28
03-12-2009, 01:44 AM
A teenage gunman in combat clothes has killed 15 people, nine of them pupils, at a school in Germany before apparently shooting himself.
Tim Kretschmer, 17, the son of a wealthy businessman and gun collector, walked into his old school at about 9.30am on Wednesday and shot the students, three teachers and a passer-by - then fled the murder scene.
Police said he walked calmly along corridors and through classrooms, shooting his victims in the head as children ran and jumped from windows to escape him.
As more than 1,000 police officers began a massive hunt for him, Kretschmer hijacked a van before being caught 25 miles away in a shoot-out in which two passers-by were killed before he apparently turned his pistol on himself.
"He went into the school with a weapon and carried out a bloodbath," said regional police chief Erwin Hetger. "I've never seen anything like this in my life."
Chancellor Angela Merkel said: "This is a day of mourning for the whole of Germany. It is unimaginable that in just seconds, pupils and teachers were killed - it is an appalling crime."
About 1,000 children attend the Albertville school which Kretschmer left last year. Seven of the pupils who died were girls and two of the teachers and the other adult were women, said police. Seven other female pupils were injured in the attack, but none were seriously hurt.
After the attack Kretschmer fled the school toward the centre of Winnenden, a town near Stuttgart with a population of 28,000. He hijacked a van but when the driver fled after swerving off the road to avoid a police checkpoint Kretschmer managed to escape and ran into an industrial area in the town of Wendlingen with police in pursuit. He went into a car dealership - shooting dead a salesman and a customer - and then went back outside.
"In front of the dealership the young man then opened fire toward the many police vehicles," said a police spokesman. "A gun battle ensued between him and the many police involved in the pursuit of him. According to our current information, he then shot himself."
Police remain unsure if Kretschmer killed himself or was hit by shots from officers.
-Nova
Tim Kretschmer, 17, the son of a wealthy businessman and gun collector, walked into his old school at about 9.30am on Wednesday and shot the students, three teachers and a passer-by - then fled the murder scene.
Police said he walked calmly along corridors and through classrooms, shooting his victims in the head as children ran and jumped from windows to escape him.
As more than 1,000 police officers began a massive hunt for him, Kretschmer hijacked a van before being caught 25 miles away in a shoot-out in which two passers-by were killed before he apparently turned his pistol on himself.
"He went into the school with a weapon and carried out a bloodbath," said regional police chief Erwin Hetger. "I've never seen anything like this in my life."
Chancellor Angela Merkel said: "This is a day of mourning for the whole of Germany. It is unimaginable that in just seconds, pupils and teachers were killed - it is an appalling crime."
About 1,000 children attend the Albertville school which Kretschmer left last year. Seven of the pupils who died were girls and two of the teachers and the other adult were women, said police. Seven other female pupils were injured in the attack, but none were seriously hurt.
After the attack Kretschmer fled the school toward the centre of Winnenden, a town near Stuttgart with a population of 28,000. He hijacked a van but when the driver fled after swerving off the road to avoid a police checkpoint Kretschmer managed to escape and ran into an industrial area in the town of Wendlingen with police in pursuit. He went into a car dealership - shooting dead a salesman and a customer - and then went back outside.
"In front of the dealership the young man then opened fire toward the many police vehicles," said a police spokesman. "A gun battle ensued between him and the many police involved in the pursuit of him. According to our current information, he then shot himself."
Police remain unsure if Kretschmer killed himself or was hit by shots from officers.
-Nova