Hoppstädten-Weiersbach (dpa / lrs) - The armed with an ax 26-year-old from the circle Birkenfeld has been killed by a police officer with a shot in the head. "We assume that he was dead immediately," said Chief Prosecutor Michael Brandt on Monday after the autopsy in Bad Kreuznach. The shot hit the man's head from the front. For the circumstances of the deadly firearms use it is now in the further investigation.

The Eritrean had been on the road for hours with an ax in the community Hoppstädten-Weiersbach on Saturday and had the investigation according to a man threatened and hit on a car. After a large manhunt, the public prosecutor's aggressive man was then shot by a police officer.

The motives of the 26-year-old were still completely unclear on Monday. The recognized refugee had lived in the district Birkenfeld, but there no firm registration address. Whether he was ill or had taken drugs, was initially not fixed. The result of a toxicological study will take some time.