Germany Movie Theater Shooting Live Updates: Armed Man Opens Fire In Viernheim

UPDATE: 1:17 p.m. EDT — A gunman who entered a movie theater in Viernheim, Germany, Thursday carried a rifle, said the Interior Minister of Hesse State Peter Beuth.

Police stormed the movie theater, killing the gunman in the process. No other people were killed in the incident. Some people were receiving treatment for exposure to tear gas used by police.

Beuth described the gunman as a “disturbed.” The gunman has not yet been identified. Police said they had not yet established a motive and said it was possible that the man had a militant background, Reuters reported.

A witness said the gunman appeared to be between 18 and 25 years old.

UPDATE: 11:50 a.m. EDT — The New York Police Department has deployed extra officers to movie theaters across the city after a gunman entered a movie theater in Viernheim, Germany, earlier Thursday.

German police killed the gunman some time after they entered the cineplex. The gunman, who has not yet been identified, reportedly fired into the air when he entered the complex shortly after 3 p.m. local time when the first showings of the day began, the Guardian reported.

Germany’s DPA press agency reported that state security services believe the man was a “confused individual” and not a terrorist.

UPDATE: 11:34 a.m. EDT — German police said that no one was injured by a gunman who entered a movie theater Viernheim, Germany, Thursday.

Police used tear gas when they entered the complex and killed the gunman. Reports said at least 20 people had been exposed to tear gas.

"The police thought that the gunman was holding hostages, and because of that he was shot dead," said Peter Beuth, the state’s interior minister, the BBC reported.

Beuth said that four shots were fired inside the theater. He did not know what kind of weapon was used by the gunman, NBC News reported.

The gunman’s identity has not yet been released.

UPDATE: 11:20 a.m. EDT — A gunman who entered a movie theater in Viernheim, Germany, was killed Thursday when police stormed the movie complex. Germany’s Interior Minister confirmed the death to local media.

Germany has one of Europe’s most stringent gun control policies banning fully automatic weapons, the Library of Congress reports. “It restricts the acquisition, possession and carrying of firearms to those with a creditable need for a weapon,” the Library said.

Small-arms permits do allow citizens to own weapons including pistols, Deutsche Welle reported. Arms sellers in Germany have seen an increased demand for weapons following the terrorist attacks in Paris in November 2015, the German newspaper reported in January.

UPDATE: 11:07 a.m. EDT — A gunman who entered a movie theater in Viernheim, Germany, was shot dead by authorities Thursday, Reuters reported, citing local media. At least 20 people were injured in the incident after many were exposed to tear gas.

UPDATE: 11:02 a.m. EDT — Police in Germany have arrested a gunman who entered a movie theater in Viernheim, a city 40 miles south of Frankfurt, local media reported.

Approximately 20 people were injured, with many exposed to tear gas, the BBC reported.

Original story:

German media reported Thursday that an armed man entered a movie theater in the southwestern town Viernheim, the BBC reported. Police have surrounded the movie theater where the armed man was holed up.

Police said they were dealing with a "threat situation" but would not provide further details on what was happening at the Kinopolis movie theater, the Associated Press reported.

German media reported that a man had entered the movie theater and fired one shot. The man has reportedly barricaded himself in the theater. It is unclear if he is alone or if he has taken any hostages. Germany's Bild newspaper said special forces were present on the scene.

The theater shooting in Germany comes as European nations remain vigilant following terror attacks in both Brussels and Paris in recent months. The November 2015 coordinated terror attacks on three locations in Paris left 130 people dead and attacks in March in Brussels left 32 people dead. Hundreds of people were injured. The Islamic State group, also known as ISIS, claimed responsibility for both attacks.