Hunter’s deadly revenge on community after threatening to take away driver’s license: Police fear killer could kill dozens more after killing two people – putting 50 people under police protection

Austrian police have warned that a fugitive hunter who killed two people yesterday after a dispute over a permit could kill dozens of others as 50 terrified people have been placed under police protection.

Austrian authorities have launched a major search for 56-year-old suspect and hunter Roland Drexler, who allegedly murdered a mayor and a retired police officer turned hunting manager in a sleepy Austrian town yesterday morning.

Drexler shot Franz Hofer, the 64-year-old conservative mayor of Kirchberg ob der Donau who was also a hunting official in the region, as he headed to a foot salon in the Altenfelden district of Fraunschlag.

Witnesses saw the two men leave their car at the same time, before Drexler shot Hofer around 8:30 am. As the mayor fled to a nearby meadow, Drexler shot him again, this time with a weapon rated for longer ranges.

After getting back into his car, he drove to nearby Arnreit, less than a mile from where Hofer was shot, before entering the unlocked home of his second victim and shooting him dead in his living room, before fled to an unknown location.

Austrian mayor Franz Hofer (photo) was shot dead yesterday morning

Law enforcement officers pass media gathered during the manhunt on October 28, 2024 near Rohrbach, Austria

Police believe the shooting began after several hunters made allegations against Drexler that he had violated conservation and species protection rules serious enough to put him at risk of losing his hunting license.

As a result, police have requested personal protection units for 50 people who may be at risk of being shot by Drexler, who is still considered actively armed, with two long guns and a pistol, and dangerous.

His whereabouts are currently unknown and neighbors are terrified for their lives.

A father of three who spoke to local media said that as soon as he heard Drexler was on the run, “we immediately locked ourselves in.”

A mother of two said: ‘We are scared. My mother-in-law and I don’t go out.’

Police officers patrol near Rohrbach, Upper Austria, on October 28, 2024, during a manhunt for a gunman suspected of killing a local mayor and another person

Law enforcement officers patrol during a manhunt on October 28, 2024 near Rohrbach, Austria

Police officers patrol near Rohrbach, Upper Austria, on October 28, 2024, during a manhunt for a gunman suspected of killing a local mayor and another person

Drexler left both of his phones in one of his homes, and an initial search of the immediate area using dogs, drones and helicopters turned up no solid leads, leaving open the possibility that he was still in the region.

More than 250 officers are still working in the area around the murder sites to secure buildings, protect people and search for the fugitive.

Police have expanded their search to look for him in Germany and the Czech Republic, and an international arrest warrant has now been issued.

Questions have been raised about how he was driven to commit such a crime.

The local prosecutor’s office said he was a “clean slate” and had never been criminally charged in his life.

More than 250 officers are still in the area around the murder sites to secure buildings, protect people and search for the fugitive

Police have expanded their search to look for him in Germany and the Czech Republic, and an international arrest warrant has now been issued

Police have been working overnight to find more clues in their hunt for the killer

He reportedly divorced his wife, with whom he had three children, a year ago. Police are currently questioning them.

A man who knew him said he was “a sociable and funny person – as long as it wasn’t about hunting.”

State hunting master Herbert Sieghartsleitner: ‘I am deeply shocked by what happened. I knew Franz Hofer very well personally. It’s unbelievable what’s happening now.’

Thomas Stelzer, the centre-right governor of Upper Austria, said: “These outrageous actions have shocked our state. In these difficult times, all our thoughts and deepest condolences are with the families and all their members.”