Killer van driver was ‘known to the police’

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 that 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 and several cars had been searched thoroughly, but 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 four previous court appearances 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 him as an industrial designer with 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, and a 65-yearold man from Borken county.

Early yesterday, all three bodies were taken from the crash scene in front of the Kiepenkerl pub. Inside his van, police found illegal firecrackers that were disguised as a fake bomb, a fake pistol and the real gun the driver used to kill himself with.

Inside one of his apartments near the crash scene, police found more firecrackers and a “no-longer-usable AK-47 machine gun”.

Officials said some of the 20 people injured were still in a lifethreatening condition.