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German Prosecutors: Munich Shooter Received Psychiatric Care In 2015


Vigil For Three Kosovar Victims Of Munich Shootings
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WATCH: Vigil For Three Kosovar Victims Of Munich Shootings

German authorities say a man suspected of fatally shooting nine people in Munich on July 22 underwent two months of inpatient psychiatric treatment last year due to social anxiety and depression.

Thomas Steinkraus-Koch, a spokesman for Munich prosecutors, told reporters on July 24 that the 18-year-old suspect "received inpatient treatment in 2015 for two months and after that received outpatient care."

The alleged shooter has been identified as David Ali Sonboly, a German-Iranian man born and raised in Munich. Police say he was found dead about 1 kilometer from the Olympia shopping mall where the killings occurred, apparently shot in the head by his own hand, police said.

Steinkraus-Koch said the suspect suffered from "fears of contact with others" and also depression.

Bavaria police chief Robert Heimberger said on July 24 that the suspect had been planning the attack for a year.

Meanwhile, the top law enforcement official of the state of Bavaria, of which Munich is the capital, said on July 24 that municipalities need to be able to call upon the military in such situations.

Germany adopted laws in the postwar period banning the domestic deployment of the military except in a national emergency.

State Interior Minister Joachim Herrman told the Welt am Sonntag newspaper that those laws were obsolete considering the “absolutely stable democracy in our country.”

Elsewhere, Kosovo is holding a day of mourning for its three nationals who were killed in Munich on July 22.

Flags were lowered across the country on July 24. Two other Kosovars were wounded in the shooting rampage.

Also on July 24, German police raised the official toll of those wounded in the Munich attack from two dozen to 35.

Based on reporting by AP, Reuters, AFP, and dpa

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