- A hunter has killed a mayor and one other man, and left a third wounded
- He was accused of ‘unhuntsmanlike behaviour’
- Austrian authorities have sent in an elite special forces unit to hunt him down
A hunter has killed an Austrian mayor and another man, and wounded a third, in a devastating shooting spree after he was reportedly accused of ‘unhuntsmanlike behaviour.’
Reports that shots were fired in the Rohrbach district of upper Austria were made to emergency services at around 8.30am local time this morning, where the mayor of the town of Kirchberg ob der Donau was killed.
Residents have been told to barricade themselves indoors as Austrian cops hunt for the shooter, whose identity is not currently known an is still believed to be armed and dangerous. Austrian authorities have sent in EKO Cobra, an elite special forces unit, to help apprehend the suspect.
The mayor, named locally as Franz Hofer, was killed in the town of Altenfelden in the middle of a meadow, about 500 meters from a federal highway.
He was a hunting director, according to local media, and had been leading the town of around 1,000 since 2008, though was looking to retire soon.
While a motive for the shocking spree has not yet been ascertained, Austrian newspaper Kurier reported that the mayor had recently filed a complaint against the fugitive for ‘unhuntsmanlike behaviour’.
Police officers patrol in Rohrbach, Upper Austria, on October 28, 2024, after at least two men were shot dead in the Muehlviertel region in the morning
Police officers patrol in Altenfelden, Upper Austria, on October 28, 2024, after at least two man were shot dead in the Muehlviertel region in the morning
The mayor, named locally as Franz Hofer (pictured), was killed in the town of Altenfelden in the middle of a meadow, about 500 meters from a federal highway.
Shots were fired in the Rohrbach district of upper Austria this morning, where the mayor of the town of Kirchberg ob der Donau was killed (File image of Kirchberg ob der Donau)
The mayor of the town was killed by a man believed to be a hunter (File image of Kirchberg ob der Donau)
Austrian newspaper Die Presse reported that the two men were fighting over the allocation of hunting rights.
Acquaintances from the local hunting scene told the newspaper that the suspect was ‘problematic.’
The second victim, a man has not been named and was found in nearby Arnreit, was also believed to have been a current or former hunting director.
The third victim has not yet been identified.
State Hunting Master Herbert Sieghartsleitner: ‘I am deeply shocked by what has happened. I knew Franz Hofer very well personally. It is unbelievable what is happening right now.’
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
