German-Iranian hacks girl's FB account offering free food to lure other victims

Munich: An 18-year-old dual-citizen German-Iranian from Munich, who suffered from depression, was the gunman who killed nine people and wounded 16 others at a Munich shopping mall. He later turned the gun on himself. He carried a 9mm Glock pistol and a red rucksack containing 300 rounds of ammunition. The police denied he had any link with the ISIS.

Two women mourn at an underground station near the Olympia mall. Pic/AFP

The shooting began at a McDonald's outlet at the Olympia shopping mall near Munich's Olympic stadium on Friday night. A video posted on social media appeared to show a man dressed in black walking away from the restaurant while firing repeatedly on people as they fled. Most of the casualties were youngsters aged 15-21.

The invite
The 'lone wolf' allegedly hacked a Facebook account of a teenage girl and lured people to the shopping centre with an offer of free food. The post, sent from the woman's account, urged people to come to McDonald's at 4pm, saying: "I'll give you something if you want, but not too expensive."

‘Deranged'
The gunman's name has not been made public, although locally, he has been identified as Ali Sonboly. Investigations of his home and police files point to "a classic act by a deranged person," police chief Hubertus Andrae said. "There is absolutely no link to the Islamic State."

The city's chief prosecutor said the suspect had suffered "some form of depression", but voiced caution over reports he may have undergone psychiatric treatment.