German police knew Munster driver well

The man who drove a van into a crowd in the German city of Munster was well-known to police and had a history of run-ins with the law, German prosecutors said, adding they believe he acted alone.

The 48-year-old, whose name was not released, killed two people and injured 20 others on Saturday afternoon outside a bar in the city’s old town before shooting himself dead inside the van.

He was a Munster resident and apparently well off.

The city’s police president, Hajo Kuhlisch, said the man’s four apartments – two in Munster and two in Saxony – and several cars had been searched thoroughly, but officers were still investigating the evidence and it was too early to speculate about a motive.

“We have no indications that there is a political background or that others were involved,” prosecutor Elke Adomeit told reporters.

“But he was well known to the police.”

She said the man had three previous court procedures in Munster and one in nearby Arnsberg in 2015 and 2016.

His run-ins with the law regarded threats, property damage, fraud and a hit-and-run, but Ms Adomeit said all charges were dismissed.

Local media have identified the man as an industrial designer who had been suffering psychological problems, but police would not confirm the details.

Authorities have identified the two victims killed by the van as a 51-year-old woman from Luneburg county, 180 miles to the north east, and a 65-year-old man from nearby Borken county.

Early yesterday, all three bodies were taken from the crash scene in front of the Kiepenkerl pub.

Picture: AP. A man lays flowers at the site in the city’s old town.