Police Hunt Suspects After Shooting at Aarau Rave Leaves One Dead, Five Injured
Swiss authorities are searching for one or more gunmen responsible for a shooting at a dance event in Aarau that killed a 22-year-old woman and wounded five others.
Swiss police launched a nationwide manhunt Sunday after a shooting at a rave held on a horseracing track in Aarau killed a 22-year-old Italian woman and injured four men and a woman aged 24 to 27. The incident occurred as the event, which attracted up to 3,000 attendees, was winding down and more than 100 people remained on the premises.
Colonel Michael Leupold of the cantonal police said investigators are examining three possible motives – terrorism, a targeted criminal act, or another type of mass attack – and that all appear equally plausible at this stage. He added that officers are searching across the country and that the risk to the public in the Aarau canton is not considered higher than elsewhere, as the suspect(s) are believed to have fled.
Witnesses gave unverified accounts of two shooters, and the army deployed a special forces unit and a helicopter to assist the investigation. Switzerland’s universal conscription system allows most men who have completed basic training to keep their service weapons at home, though ammunition is generally not stored domestically.
The rave organizers posted a statement on social media expressing sympathy for the victims and their families. > "The cowardly attack on the guests at the Aarau rave has broken our hearts," the organizers wrote. > "A rave should always be a place of joy and love."