Six people were shot dead at a centre for mothers and children in the northern German city of Stade, near Hamburg, in what police described as a custody‑related attack.
The victims were all employees of the facility. Several others were injured. A three‑month‑old baby and her mother, who were present during the incident, were unharmed, BBC reports.
Police detained three people, including the suspected gunman, and said there was no further threat to the public.
Lower Saxony’s Interior Minister Daniela Behrens told reporters late Monday the attack appeared to have been “committed for family reasons” and described it as “an act of violence carried out in an extremely cold‑blooded manner, with no political or economic motives.”
Shots were first reported around 12:10 local time (10:10 GMT) at a youth welfare facility on Dankerstrasse. Authorities urged residents to avoid the area. Police later confirmed multiple homicides had occurred. Five victims were killed inside the building, while a sixth died later in hospital.
The suspect, identified as a 45‑year‑old Turkish national born in Germany and living in Hanover, had an appointment at the centre on Monday to discuss custody of his daughter with several of the victims, police chief Kathrin Schuol of Lueneburg said.
He was known to police for threats but had not been considered particularly violent. He did not hold a firearms licence.
After the shooting, the suspect fled in a car driven by a woman. Witnesses reported police shouting “stop where you are” before firing at the vehicle. Footage published by Bild showed officers stopping a Mercedes with a blown‑out tyre at a roadblock, ordering the occupants out, and detaining them face down on the road.
Large numbers of police and emergency personnel were deployed to the scene. Children at a nearby daycare and primary school were collected by their parents.
Stade, a city of about 50,000 people, lies 30km west of Hamburg.
