An Aarau rave shooting manhunt is under way after a 22-year-old woman was killed and five others injured at a techno event held at a horse racing track in northern Switzerland in the early hours of Sunday.
The woman died at the scene in Aarau, Aargau Cantonal Police said. The five injured (four men and a woman aged between 24 and 27) were taken to hospital with injuries described as ‘ranging from minor to severe’.
Aarau rave shooting manhunt: what is known
Police confirmed the shooting took place at an annual event being held at the town’s horse racing track, where a rave continued into the early hours. Officers were alerted at around 02:30 local time, local media reported. The perpetrator’s identity, possible motive and ‘exact circumstances’ of the incident remain unknown, police said.
Up to 3,500 people were expected to attend the event, according to the organisers’ website. Aargau Racing Club, which hosted the rave, said the occasion had been ‘overshadowed by a serious incident’ and thanked emergency services for their response.
Swiss DJ Tekibo, who was performing at the event, said he had lost a friend in the incident. Writing on Instagram, he said he was ‘still trying to process what happened’.
Heavy police deployment across the region
The response to the Aarau rave shooting drew a substantial security mobilisation. An area around the racing track, the town’s swimming pool and sports field was cordoned off, with the public urged to stay away. A large contingent of officers was also deployed beyond Aarau ‘as a precaution’, Aargau Cantonal Police said.
An AFP journalist reported seeing armed officers on the highway up to 30km from the site. Images from Aarau showed a heavy police presence in the area, with an armoured vehicle blocking a road and officers in riot gear patrolling the streets.
The regional disaster response unit, known as KKE, was deployed alongside police and fire officials, broadcaster SRF reported. SRF also reported that a Swiss Army helicopter was seen surveying the area in the early hours of Sunday.
Witnesses were asked by police to submit photographs and video from the scene to assist the investigation.
Aarau: the setting
Aarau lies approximately 46km west of Zurich and has a population of around 23,000. The town is the capital of the canton of Aargau.
Switzerland has one of the highest rates of gun ownership in Europe, though violent shootings are rare. Tighter controls on firearms were introduced in recent years, according to the Swiss federal authorities. The Aarau rave shooting is among the most serious incidents of gun violence at a public event in the country in recent memory.
Police have given no indication of how soon a suspect may be identified. The manhunt remained active as of Sunday morning, with officers deployed across the wider region.
