Suspect In Zurich Mosque Shooting Found Dead

Cover image via Reuters

A man who shot three people at a Zurich mosque on Monday is dead, police said yesterday, confirming that a body found near the scene was that of the assailant.

Zurich cantonal police said the authorities had identified the suspect, but gave no details.

“The dead man found around 300m from the scene of the crime after the shooting in the mosque is the suspect,” a statement on a police website said.

“There are no indications of a link between the suspect and Islamic State (in Iraq and Syria),” the cantonal police said in an e-mail statement.

At about 5.30pm, the gunman entered the prayer centre in a neighbourhood known as Aussersihl, just south of the city’s main train station. Several worshippers were praying at the centre.

 The assailant opened fire, injuring three men, aged 30, 35 and 56, before fleeing. The men were taken to a hospital. Two of the three were injured seriously and one was wounded slightly, police said.

Police said the gunman was about 30 years old and was wearing dark clothes, including a dark woollen cap. Police officers from both the city and canton of Zurich sealed off the area after the incident, police spokesman Judith Hoedl said in a statement.

The prayer centre in Zurich is largely frequented by Somali immigrants, though the backgrounds of the men who were wounded was not clear.

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