In a Linz apartment

Attack with scissors and a syringe: Suspect shot dead

The crime scene in Linz(Bild: Markus Wenzel)

Armed with scissors and a syringe, a 27-year-old man with a criminal record attacked police officers in an apartment in Linz early Thursday morning. The officers were forced to shoot the attacker in self-defense.  

What on earth is going on in Linz right now? Twelve hours after the attempted murder with an axe at the Südbahnhofmarkt, the next bloody incident occurred in the state capital: A 27-year-old man known to the authorities had already kept law enforcement busy at 10 p.m. by announcing his intention to commit suicide. He planned to enter the water in a stream behind Wüstenrotplatz in Linz-Auwiesen.

The aggressive and raging man was taken by police in a police van to the Neuromed Campus due to imminent danger, but was not admitted there.

Reached for a weapon in self-defense
Two hours later, the police were alerted again, this time to the apartment of the 27-year-old, who was known to the authorities, in Linz-Kleinmünchen. Around 12:45 a.m., several police patrols were dispatched to Alleitenweg 45 due to a commotion and loud screams. Due to the persistent screams, the officers immediately entered the apartment in question and found three people there—as it later turned out—the 27-year-old, the young female tenant, and another man.

When the officers entered the apartment, the 27-year-old charged directly at them with no hesitation, holding a pair of scissors in one hand and a syringe in the other. The officers subsequently used their service weapons and struck the 27-year-old. First aid measures immediately administered by the officers were unsuccessful.

Their actions are being reviewed by the new Investigation and Complaints Office for Allegations of Abuse (EBM) within the Ministry of the Interior; the public prosecutor’s office must then decide on how to proceed.