A police officer used his service weapon during a check in Steinau. According to authorities, a driver drove towards an officer. Residents reported a total of three shots.

Steinau – Update from March 1st, 7:36 p.m.: After a traffic stop in Steinau in which a firearm was used, police markings on the street bear witness to the nighttime incident. A police officer used his service weapon late on Thursday evening (February 26) on the corner of Bergstrasse. A driver had previously ignored the police's stop signals and drove towards an officer. The residents on Steinauer Ringstrasse were shocked. They reported to our newspaper that a total of three shots were fired on Thursday evening.

First report from February 27th, 1:41 p.m.: A 24-year-old man was arrested overnight after police used a firearm during a traffic stop on Ringstrasse in Steinau. The incident occurred on Thursday evening (February 26) around 11:30 p.m., as the Hanau public prosecutor's office and the Southeast Hesse police headquarters reported in a joint statement.

Accordingly, a patrol initially checked a vehicle when the uniformed officers became aware of another car. According to the message, it should also be checked due to the unusual driving style. However, the driver did not respond to appropriate stop signals and instead the car drove towards one of the officers. “The service weapon was then used in the direction of the vehicle,” the statement continues. The car then drove away.

Police officer uses service weapon during traffic stop in Steinau

During a search in which a police helicopter was also used, emergency services discovered an abandoned and locked car in the field area near Steinau. According to authorities, it is still unclear whether this is the fleeing vehicle and is now part of the further investigation being conducted by the Hanau public prosecutor's office. The police were able to identify a 24-year-old man in a part of the city that night in connection with the vehicle that was found. He is apparently connected to the car and was arrested.

The criminal police have now secured traces on Ringstrasse. The vehicle found was also seized for further investigations. As of now, the police have no information about any injuries. According to the statement, the investigations, including the exact processes and background to the incident on Ringstrasse, are ongoing. Witnesses who have observed the incident are asked to contact the criminal police on (06181) 100 120.

The police in the Main-Kinzig district are currently also investigating one escalated confrontation in a residential building in Hanau. Two unknown people are said to have used a pepper gun.