Following the violent death of a 14-year-old boy at a school in Lower Franconia (Germany), an arrest warrant was issued on Saturday for a young man of the same age. The suspect is now in a jail, a police spokesman said Saturday afternoon. The 14-year-old is believed to have shot his classmate on Friday afternoon in his school grounds in Lohr am Main.
The alleged weapon, a firearm, was found in the suspect’s home. According to police spokesman Enrico Ball, the young man told investigators that the murder weapon was hidden there. But he did not confess to the crime itself.
The emergency doctor was only able to determine death
A police patrol found the 14-year-old boy dead and with external injuries in a small park near the school center on Friday afternoon. Resuscitation attempts were unsuccessful, an emergency doctor could only determine death.
➤ When children kill: Are young people becoming more and more brutal?
Another young man had already gone to the Lohr police station and reported that a friend of his had killed a young man on the school premises. The 14-year-old suspect was arrested around 6 p.m.
Young people attended the same secondary school
Lohr am Main is located between Würzburg and Aschaffenburg and has around 15,000 inhabitants. The three young men are said to have attended the local secondary school together. The school center also houses a high school and a special needs school. There is also a multi-sports field and a basketball court, as well as a green area with a park bench, trees and bushes, as well as a fast food restaurant nearby. The green area will also be a popular meeting place for young people outside of school hours. In Bavaria, classes only start again next Tuesday, after the long summer holidays.
Due to his age, the young suspect is criminally responsible. The age of criminal responsibility starts from the 14th birthday. The alleged shooter’s motive was initially unknown. It was also unclear where he got the gun. “Investigations are in full swing. This is a crucial question for us as well, knowing how a 14-year-old could obtain a firearm,” Ball said.
➤ Child crime: why the reports are not always the same
On Saturday, the police again cordoned off the crime scene area around the school center in Lohr to ensure traces. The day before, evidence was kept at the site until late at night.
Witness reportedly heard a shot
After the victim was discovered, investigators initially did not have clear evidence of the murder weapon. On Saturday night, a witness reported that they may have heard a gunshot coming from the school grounds on Friday between 1pm and 2pm. Police then specifically looked for a firearm. The autopsy carried out at the Würzburg Institute of Forensic Medicine also revealed that the victim died from a gunshot wound.
Flowers and candles in Freudenberg: In March 2023, a 12-year-old boy and a 13-year-old boy stabbed 12-year-old Luise
© Image: Portal/STEPHANE NITSCHKE
11-year-old girl allegedly violently killed girl
In recent months, acts of violence committed by children in Germany have made headlines. A few days ago it became known that an 11-year-old boy was responsible for the violent death of a 10-year-old girl in an orphanage in Wunsiedel, also in Franconia. According to the investigation, he would have strangled the girl after an argument.
In March, two girls aged 12 and 13 were in Freudenberg, North Rhine-Westphalia Luisa, 12 years old have stabbed. Both are also not yet criminally responsible.
➤ 12-year-old boy stabbed by two girls: Freudenberg mourns Luise