Terror Attack in Vienna: No Indication of Second Assassin According to Interior Minister
Following the terrorist attack in Vienna, which left five dead and 22 injured, the analysis of almost 20,000 indications has so far revealed no evidence of further assassins. However, neither the Chancellor nor the Minister of the Interior wanted to definitively rule out that there might not be a second fugitive suspect after all.
Such a Kalashnikov Assault Rifle AK-74 was used by the assassin. The Kalashnikov is one of the most widely-used guns in the world, with an estimated 72 million rifles in circulation around the world in almost 100 countries / Picture: © Wikimedia Commons / RussianTrooper, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
Nevertheless, the high security level remains intact. Minister of the Interior Nehammer emphasized that the high security level and police presence in Vienna's inner city would remain intact to prevent any repetition or imitation.
The increased warning level will remain in effect until all video material has been evaluated, said also the spokesman of the Ministry of the Interior, Harald Sörös, as reported by the Austrian Broadcasting Corporation ORF.
It is still not possible to say exactly how many perpetrators are responsible, said Minister of the Interior Karl Nehammer in a press conference according to ORF.
Nehammer also said that there had been 18 raids and 14 arrests in the vicinity of the shot assassin. Those arrested were from the circle of friends and acquaintances of the 20-year-old assassin.
In the course of the day, there had been house searches in the Austrian cities Vienna, Linz and St. Pölten.
According to initial findings, there were no indications that they were actively involved in the attack.
Two other men were arrested in Switzerland on Tuesday, as they too were possibly connected to the assassin.
According to the Director General for Public Security, Franz Ruf, the investigations in the perpetrator's surroundings included the seizure of ammunition.
The perpetrator's apartment had been opened with explosives, as was already known before.
In addition, extensive further evidence was confiscated, which must first be evaluated.
There was a clear proximity to the terrorist group Islamic State.
There was a fear of imitators. Moreover, Minister of the Interior Nehammer did not want to definitively rule out the possibility that there might not be a second fugitive perpetrator after all.
"We now assume that there was only one perpetrator who moved very quickly and fired at six locations in downtown Vienna, killing numerous people here in cold blood. But we do not yet have one hundred percent certainty".