At the Alexander-von-Humboldt-Realschule and the adjacent comprehensive school at the Neuenhof school centre in Siegburg, the police had been on large-scale deployment since Wednesday morning. The school administration had triggered an amok alert. As the police confirmed to our editorial staff, a person was seen with a weapon. According to initial information, bullet casings were also found on site. The police initially also spoke of "found ammunition", but retracted this information in the course of the operation. So far, there are no reports of casualties.

The police were deployed with special forces, and two helicopters circled over the school centre and the neighbouring area in the meantime. According to GA information, one suspect was temporarily arrested. A second youth is said to have fled in the direction of Kaufland. A manhunt has been launched.

The police said on Wednesday evening that they had apprehended a 14-year-old who matched the description of the perpetrator. The officers took the youth to the police station, checked him and also searched the flat with the parents' consent. However, there were no suspicious circumstances.

A police spokesperson had previously said: "Several persons matching the description of the perpetrator were encountered. They were checked by us. However, we cannot speak of an arrest." Later it was said that "two young men" had been checked and questioned. The police did not give further details at first.

As the headmistress of the secondary school, Iris Gust, told our editorial team, a person dressed in dark clothing had been seen at the school's bicycle racks from a neighbouring factory site in the morning. The person was said to have been holding a dark object in his hand, which turned out to be a weapon. The school administration was informed and triggered the amok alarm at around 10.20 am. During this time, two shots were allegedly fired at the building. A witness reported to the police that a masked person had fired a long gun into the air.

At first, the police also spoke of shots being fired, but then corrected the statement to "banging noises". According to the police, remains of fireworks were found on the searched premises. According to the police, no suspicious persons or objects were found. Special forces from Cologne and Düsseldorf were deployed, as well as more than 40 patrol officers from the region.

Pupils from classes located on the ground floor are said to have escaped to safety via the windows. The pupils on the upper floors locked themselves in the classrooms and waited to be led outside by the police officers. The school was searched by special forces and the manhunt for the fugitive is ongoing. "At this time, police have no information that the person seen by witnesses has entered the school." After the school was searched, special forces took the students to the adjacent gym. Parents of the children have also been able to go there since 1.15pm. Police and emergency chaplains are on standby to assist. At 3 p.m., the police finally announced that the searches in the school had been completed and that the children would now be handed over to their parents.

In the neighbouring comprehensive school, there were fewer pupils than usual in the building today, as a counselling day is taking place there today. Siegburg's mayor Stefan Rosemann (SPD) interrupted an out-of-town appointment in Cologne and made his way to Siegburg. After the large-scale operation, the police are still investigating the violation of the Weapons Act.

Original text: Sebastian Fink and Andreas Dyck

Translation: Mareike Graepel