Police say a suspect has been arrested following a weekend shooting at a rave in northern Switzerland that left one person dead and five wounded.
The 43-year-old Swiss citizen was arrested during the night after a manhunt.
Police in the Aargau region said Monday that investigations into a possible motive are ongoing, and that at present they believe the shooting was carried out by a lone perpetrator.
They said that a 22-year-old woman died of injuries at the scene, while four men and one woman, between 24 and 27 years old, were taken to the hospital with injuries ranging from minor to severe.
All of the victims are residents of Switzerland, police said. They did not release their names in line with Swiss privacy rules.
The police said that they plan to hold a news conference on Wednesday and won’t release further information until then.
Armed police officers patrol near the Schachen horse racing track in Aarau following a shooting during a rave event near Aarau, Switzerland. Credit: AP
However, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Sunday evening identified the woman who was killed and two other victims as Italian citizens.
“I express my deepest condolences for the death of Maria Spinelli, the young Italian woman who was a victim of the tragic shooting in Aarau, Switzerland,” she wrote on X, identifying the dead woman by name.
“My thoughts also go to the other injured individuals, among whom there are two Italian citizens, and to all the people involved in this dramatic event,” she said, adding that she trusts “the work of the Swiss authorities to shed full light on what happened and identify those responsible”.
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Public shootings are rare in the Alpine country despite relatively widespread gun ownership.
Authorities were alerted around 2.30am local time to the shooting in the canton’s capital Aarau, 29 miles west of Zurich, police spokesperson Pascal Wenzel told Swiss public broadcaster SRF.
At the time of the incident, the “Aarau Rave VOL. 7” was taking place at the horse racing track in Aarau’s Schachen district, SRF reported. The fire department cordoned off a large area around the site.
A major police operation was still underway on Sunday afternoon and locals were asked to stay away from the area scoured by investigators for possible links connected to the crime.
Officers, firefighters and ambulances were on the scene in large numbers. Police in Freiburg, in neighbouring Germany, also took part in search efforts for the suspect, the German news agency dpa reported.
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Swiss daily Blick reported that attendees initially mistook the shots for fireworks until somebody shouted “everyone down”.
Police asked any witnesses with videos or photos to share them with investigators.
Swiss DJ Tekibo, who performed at the rave, wrote on Instagram that “what happened at Aarauer rave is absolutely heartbreaking.”
“Techno and raves are supposed to be a place for freedom and safety, never a place where something like this happens,” he added.
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