{"id":123376,"date":"2026-08-31T20:53:12","date_gmt":"2026-08-31T20:53:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/123376\/"},"modified":"2026-08-31T20:53:12","modified_gmt":"2026-08-31T20:53:12","slug":"switzerland-rave-shooting-victim-pictured-as-witness-says-she-died-before-our-eyes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/123376\/","title":{"rendered":"Switzerland rave shooting victim pictured as witness says &#8216;she died before our eyes&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Maria Spinelli, 22, was shot dead at a rave in Aarau, Switzerland, in the early hours of Sunday morning. Eyewitnesses claim that the assailant subsequently vanished into the woods<\/p>\n<p>11:54, 31 Aug 2026Updated 11:54, 31 Aug 2026<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Maria Spinelli died at the rave in Switzerland\" loading=\"eager\"  src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/0_Intelligent-and-outgoing-22-year-old-rave-shooting-victim-named-and-pictured.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p aria-label=\"Maria Spinelli died at the rave in Switzerland\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Maria Spinelli died at the rave in Switzerland(Image: Jam Press)<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">The tragic victim of a shooting at a rave in Switzerland has been identified as Maria Spinelli.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">The 22-year-old, who had secured employment as a waitress after relocating to Switzerland from Italy a year before, seemed to be a frequent attendee of parties and music events.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">A<a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailystar.co.uk\/news\/world-news\/one-dead-five-injured-gunman-37608098\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_self\"> shooter unleashed a hail of bullets on the crowd<\/a> with an assault rifle at around 2.30am on Sunday (August 30) during the techno event in Aarau. Approximately 3,500 people were present at the rave and initially<a aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailystar.co.uk\/news\/latest-news\/british-man-26-gunned-down-37601904\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_self\"> confused the sound of gunfire for fireworks <\/a>while DJ Tekibo, a friend of Maria&#8217;s, was on stage.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Police officers secure the area behind a poster advertising the rave \" loading=\"lazy\"  src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/0_GettyImages-2292158141.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p aria-label=\"Police officers secure the area behind a poster advertising the rave \" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Police officers secure the area behind a poster advertising the rave (Image: Harold CUNNINGHAM \/ AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">One bullet hit Maria and all efforts to save her proved futile, as reported by NeedToKnow. Four men and one woman, aged between 24 and 27, also sustained injuries.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Two are Italian and their injuries are not thought to be severe. Eyewitnesses claim that the assailant subsequently vanished into the woods.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">German police are aiding in the manhunt for the murderer, with the border roughly 40km away. Investigators are keeping all possibilities open, including terrorism.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Maria Spinelli had moved to Oftringen from Italy a year ago\" loading=\"lazy\"  src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1788209592_78_0_Intelligent-and-outgoing-22-year-old-rave-shooting-victim-named-and-pictured.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p aria-label=\"Maria Spinelli had moved to Oftringen from Italy a year ago\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Maria Spinelli had moved to Oftringen from Italy a year ago(Image: Jam Press)<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">A witness at Aarau Rave Vol. 7 stated that the music was slowly winding down and most attendees were making their way towards the exit when the gunfire erupted.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">He informed local media: &#8220;There were bangs. Most people thought they were firecrackers or fireworks \u2013 that&#8217;s what they sounded like.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">He and his mates didn&#8217;t immediately grasp what was transpiring when everyone suddenly began to flee. During the chaos, a woman standing next to him was &#8220;shot in the chest and had probably also been grazed in the neck&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Maria has been described as a 'lively and very intelligent girl'\" loading=\"lazy\"  src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/1788209592_43_0_Intelligent-and-outgoing-22-year-old-rave-shooting-victim-named-and-pictured.jpg\" \/><\/p>\n<p aria-label=\"Maria has been described as a 'lively and very intelligent girl'\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Maria has been described as a &#8216;lively and very intelligent girl'(Image: Jam Press)<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Despite several bystanders attempting to revive her, &#8220;the woman died in front of our eyes,&#8221; he said. &#8220;We wanted to help, but there was nothing we could do.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Maria hailed from the Roma community, was born in Atri and attended a hotel management school in Silvi Marina. Her mother \u2013 who is separated from Maria&#8217;s father, Elvis \u2013 fell ill upon hearing the tragic news at their family home in Citt\u00e0 Sant&#8217;Angelo.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Professor Federico Anzelotti, who taught Maria at the hotel management school, remembered her as a &#8220;lively and very intelligent girl&#8221;. He added: &#8220;She was outgoing, she radiated a joy for life, had lots of friends and was passionate about techno music.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">DJ Pencilmakesmusic, another performer at the event, posted online: &#8220;I&#8217;m heartbroken that we lost someone dear. I&#8217;ll never ever forget that smile.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our <a aria-label=\"newslettersLink opens in a new tab.\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dailystar.co.uk\/newsletter-preference-centre\/\" rel=\"follow nofollow noopener\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_blank\">newsletters<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Maria Spinelli, 22, was shot dead at a rave in Aarau, Switzerland, in the early hours of Sunday&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":123377,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[4],"tags":[1042,60357,1655,1006,46226,72,5980,17],"class_list":["post-123376","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-switzerland","tag-breaking-news","tag-casualty","tag-crime","tag-family","tag-festivals","tag-police","tag-shooting","tag-switzerland"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ch\/117192111287584444","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/123376","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=123376"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/123376\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/123377"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=123376"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=123376"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ch\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=123376"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}