Flowers and candles on the market place remind of the two victims of a right-wing extremist in Halle, Germany, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2019. A heavily armed assailant ranting about Jews tried to force his way into a synagogue in Germany on Yom Kippur, Judaism's holiest day, then shot two people to death nearby in an attack Wednesday that was livestreamed on a popular gaming site. (Hendrik Schmidt/dpa via AP)
The Associated Press
BERLIN (AP) - German lawmakers say police lost track for an hour of a suspected far-right extremist who killed two people after a failed attack on a synagogue.
Germany's dpa news agency quoted regional lawmakers in Saxony-Anhalt state as saying on Monday that it was two officers in a small town who eventually arrested the gunman, not the SWAT teams that were hunting him.
German security services have come under scrutiny over their response to the shooting Wednesday in the eastern city of Halle after Jewish community leaders said requests for police protection were ignored.
The 27-year-old German suspect, identified by prosecutors as Stephan B., was arrested in Zeitz, located about 50 kilometers (31 miles) south of Halle.
Authorities say he has admitted carrying out the shooting and had anti-Semitic and right-wing extremist motives.
A man mourns as he taking part in a human chain around the Jewish synagogue during the Sabbath celebrations in Halle, Germany, Friday, Oct. 11, 2019. A heavily armed assailant ranting about Jews tried to force his way into a synagogue in Germany on Yom Kippur, Judaism's holiest day, then shot two people to death nearby in an attack Wednesday that was livestreamed on a popular gaming site. (AP Photo/Jens Meyer)
The Associated Press
A man in a white overall is escorted by Police officers as he arrives at the federal prosecutor's office in Karlsruhe, Germany, Thursday, Oct. 10, 2019. A German prosecutor says the suspect in Wednesday's attack in the German city of Halle wanted to carry out a 'massacre' in a synagogue. (Uli Deck/dpa via AP)
The Associated Press
A woman lights a candle during a human chain around the Jewish synagogue during the Sabbath celebrations in Halle, Germany, Friday, Oct. 11, 2019. A heavily armed assailant ranting about Jews tried to force his way into a synagogue in Germany on Yom Kippur, Judaism's holiest day, then shot two people to death nearby in an attack Wednesday that was livestreamed on a popular gaming site. (AP Photo/Jens Meyer)
The Associated Press