Perpetrators still on the run Three dead in the Westerwald - it's parents and their son

The police find three people dead in a residential property in Weitefeld DE in the Westerwald. It is a family. The perpetrator or perpetrators are on the run.

DPA

06.04.2025, 09:50

06.04.2025, 19:28

dpa

The victims of the violent crime in Weitefeld in the Westerwald are a family of three. The victims include a 47-year-old man, a 44-year-old woman and a 16-year-old teenager, the police said. Officers had discovered three dead bodies in a house in the early hours of Sunday morning. The background to the crime was still unclear in the evening.

Investigators were searching for the perpetrator, including with a helicopter over a neighboring forest. The search will continue until the person is caught, even during the night, a police spokeswoman said late Sunday afternoon. Officers would remain present in the area.

In addition to the early hour, the crime scene - a detached house - also suggests a motive in the family environment, a police spokesperson explained. The police had been informed by an emergency call at around 3.45 a.m. on Sunday morning. When the officers arrived, one person, probably a man, had fled on foot. According to unconfirmed information, firearms or stabbing weapons may have been used in the crime. A police spokeswoman said of the emergency call: "It was a person screaming."

No specific danger to the population

There was no specific danger to the public. Nevertheless, the police asked people not to pick up hitchhikers in the region. The officers cordoned off Weitefeld and patrol cars were posted at the entrances to the town. Every car that wanted to enter or leave was checked, said a dpa reporter. Police officers with protective helmets and submachine guns could be seen. A local resident reported seeing a helicopter flying over his street shortly after 6 am.