During the arrests, two of the men were carrying live pistols. In one of several hotel rooms, which had presumably been used by the suspects for several days, investigators seized three more large-calibre handguns, a submachine gun and a large amount of cash. A car belonging to the suspects was also seized.

According to police spokesman Frank Piontek, the Bonn police received an emergency call at around 1 p.m. on Saturday stating that a 42-year-old man who was staying at the hotel at the time had been threatened. As it could not be ruled out that those involved were armed, the control centre then sent several patrol cars and special forces to the Bonner Bogen.

According to GA information, the SEK operation took place on Saturday in a rear area of the spacious hotel lobby. Around 3.30 p.m., when the area around the Joseph-Schumpeter-Allee was cordoned off, the police, armed with submachine guns, arrested two men in the hotel, including the 42-year-old. The officers used a taser. One of the two suspects was slightly injured during the arrest, according to Piontek.

"According to current knowledge, the threat described by the 42-year-old caller did not take place in reality," Bonn police wrote in a statement on Monday.

It was not until around 4.15 pm that the two men were led out of the hotel one after the other by officers and to police cars. They were then taken to police headquarters, only 500 metres away, where they were questioned. During further investigations, the police then focused on another man who might also have been involved in the events at the hotel. "We then also temporarily arrested this man," said Piontek.

The police investigation revealed that the other two arrested men, each aged 46, were friends of the 42-year-old caller. He had allegedly been staying with them in the hotel for several days.

Immediately after the arrest of the three men, special forces of the North Rhine-Westphalia police began to secure evidence and to search the men's places of stay and residence in Bonn and Cologne. The investigations continued until Sunday afternoon.

At the request of the Bonn public prosecutor's office, an investigating judge issued an arrest warrant for one of the two 46-year-olds on Sunday afternoon for violations of the Weapons and War Weapons Control Act. The other suspects were able to leave the police station on Sunday. Investigations against them and into the background are still ongoing.

Andreas Graeber-Stuch, General Manager of the Kameha Grand Hotel, was still under the impression of the events on Sunday: "Of course we wish for other things," he said. Especially since a big fundraising gala with 470 guests was held in his hotel on Saturday evening. The organiser was the Reiner Meutsch Foundation Fly & Help, which promotes the construction of schools in developing countries. Meutsch, a bus entrepreneur from the Westerwald, took over the Berge & Meer travel agency in 1989 with his business partner Klaus Scheyer and built it up into one of the leading companies in Germany. "We were able to stage this gala, including a four-course meal, without any problems thanks to our great team and an extremely good cooperation with the Bonn police," said Andreas Graeber-Stuch.

The hotel did not have to be evacuated. However, hotel guests were guided in and out of the building through a side entrance until the last police officers left.

There was always a "good exchange of information" with the emergency services, said Graeber-Stuch. "I was very grateful for that. My staff and I felt completely well and safe the whole time." According to his own statement, he had also been informed about the cordoning measures by the police at around 2 p.m., as well as about the access of the SEK and the end of the cordons between 3.30 and 4 p.m.

Afterwards, his employees were able to get back to their daily business, such as checking in guests, regardless of the ongoing investigation in the hotel and the search for evidence. They were then also intensively involved in keeping the guests informed. All in all, Graeber-Stuch says: "It was an absolutely controlled situation and at no time did we feel insecure.

He too is puzzled about the background. "Before the incident, there were no abnormalities in the hotel operations that would have indicated a tense situation." At the time of the incident, there were several hundred people in the hotel.

(Original text: Michael Wrobel, Axel Vogel and Nicolas Ottersbach; Translation: Mareike Graepel)