Two killed, suspect detained in German Mercedes plant shootout

Police detained a suspect after a shootout took place at a Mercedes-Benz plant located in southwestern Germany on Thursday in which two people died.

The latest shooting incident increased pressure on Germany's government to further tighten its gun laws. The police have identified the suspect as a 53-year-old man.

Mercedes-Benz stated that two people have been killed in the unfortunate incident. The Stuttgart prosecutor also confirmed the death of the second person and added that no one else suffered injuries.

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"One person is in police custody. The persons are employees of an external service provider," said Mercedes in a statement.

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A spokesperson from the prosecutor's office stated that investigators have been working with the assumption that the shootout has been carried out by a single perpetrator and that it had no involvement of individuals from outside the factory.

The shooting incident was the latest in the various mass shootouts carried out in Germany in recent years, many connected to extremism.

The government of Germany had vowed to further tighten the country's gun laws after a gunman carried out an open firing on the people who had gathered in a Jehovah's Witnesses hall in Hamburg in March, in which six had died.

Certain big magazines were outlawed by Germany in 2020 and five-yearly checks are conducted on gun owners to ascertain whether the possession of a weapon by them is justified.

Interior Minister Nancy Faeser had stated that after the attack took place,the government willrevisit the arms laws.

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Social Democrats, Faeser's party and the party of Chancellor Olaf Scholz have been supporting the need for tougher restrictions, and the police union of Germany also called for a swift legislative response to restrict the number of guns available.

Mercedes-Benz's flagship S-Class luxury sedan is produced at the location in Sindelfingen which is around 17 kilometres southwest of Stuttgart. About 35,000 people work at the site.

Mercedes said that the locals or colleagues working in Sindelfingen were not facing any danger now. "We are deeply shocked and saddened by the tragic news from Sindelfingen this morning. Our thoughts are with the victims, their families and all colleagues on site," the company said in a statement.

Emergency responders and police remained at the scene of the incident. The emergency services were first informed about the shootout at 7:45 am (0545 GMT). In 2012, a shootout happened at a factory site which belonged to technology firm 3M. The site was located in the western German town of Hilden and one person was killed and four others were injured in the shooting.

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