SAA event in Berngau area, Germany on Thu 8th October 2026

Following the fatal shooting of two employees of the Neumarkt district office in the Upper Palatinate, police have arrested the suspected perpetrator. A police spokesperson told BR that the suspect was wounded in the leg by gunshots during the arrest.

A routine weapons check in Berngau, in the district of Neumarkt in the Upper Palatinate, resulted in two fatalities on Thursday afternoon. Both were employees of the Neumarkt district administration. A major police operation was launched on Thursday afternoon.

In addition to the man, whose death has already been announced, his female colleague has also died. The woman died immediately after the first shots were fired, but her death was not announced until the evening. Both bodies have been recovered, and the families of both victims have been notified.

The suspected shooter had barricaded himself inside.

Employees had approached the suspected perpetrator in the early afternoon. The man apparently fired shots during the encounter. According to a police spokesperson, the suspected shooter then barricaded himself inside a building. Special forces were deployed and surrounded the building. Late in the evening, a spokesperson added that the police had since begun negotiations with the man:

"We are in talks."

"We are in contact with him, and the contact goes both ways. We always try to find a peaceful solution, which is fundamentally achieved through communication. Everyone is aware of the alternative. But the goal is definitely to find a non-violent solution," explained the police spokesperson.

Special forces and police helicopters are deployed.

According to BR (Bayerischer Rundfunk) information, around 150 police officers were on site at one point, including special forces, as well as another 90 emergency personnel from rescue services, crisis intervention teams, and the THW (Federal Agency for Technical Relief). A police helicopter was also deployed to provide the emergency services with an overview of the situation. An armored vehicle was also available. As a precaution, an interview center was set up in the local sports club.

The first emergency calls from residents who had heard gunshots were received by the police operations center in the Upper Palatinate region around 2 p.m. Berngau is located approximately six kilometers southwest of Neumarkt in the Upper Palatinate. The municipality has about 2,600 inhabitants.