Shock after shooting rampage

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Kirchberg's mayor Franz Hofer was found dead in a field - this immediately triggered a large-scale police operation.

(Bild: Horst Einöder/Flashpictures)

After two hunters were shot dead by a colleague - the "Krone" reported in detail - the hunting community in Upper Austria is stunned. State hunting master Herbert Sieghartsleitner has "never experienced anything so terrible."

"It is simply unbelievable." Herbert Sieghartsleitner, chief hunter in Upper Austria, is clearly in shock. Two murdered hunters and a suspect who had also been active as a hunter for many years - this news is hard to digest. The entire hunting community in Upper Austria is stunned and cannot understand how this tragedy could have happened. "I am deeply shocked by what has happened. I have personally known Mayor Franz Hofer very well for years. It is unbelievable what has just happened," says Sieghartsleitner.

These are difficult times for Herbert Sieghartsleitner, the provincial master hunter.

(Bild: (c)foto-kerschi.at werner-kerschbaummayr)

Disagreements among hunters are resolved with communication
However, he doesn't want to comment on possible motives or backgrounds at the moment: "That would all be speculation, and that wouldn't help anyone." Furthermore, he had not been aware of the conflict, which had apparently been smouldering for many years, until yesterday.

There are 20,500 hunters

in Upper Austria, which is around 15 percent of all Austrian hunters. A valid hunting license is a prerequisite for shooting animals.

"Basically, of course, there are always discussions or disagreements. But we try to resolve them with a lot of communication," says the provincial master hunter in an interview with the "Krone" newspaper. They always try to mediate and in most cases this works well.

Herbert Sieghartsleitner is going through some difficult times at the moment.

(Bild: Horst Einöder/Flashpictures)

Sieghartsleitner does not yet want to assess whether we should have reacted earlier or even differently in the current case. "We first have to wait and see what the investigations reveal," he says. It is simply far too early to draw conclusions at the moment, says Sieghartsleitner.

Strict rules and precise guidelines
In any case, strict rules apply to the killing of animals. Many theoretical and practical certificates are required to obtain a hunting license. Around 20,500 people in Upper Austria currently hold one, with the 51 to 60 age group being the most strongly represented. According to the regional hunting association, the proportion of women is increasing, but there are currently only around 2000 female hunters. Upper Austria - divided into around 950 hunting areas - is considered a particularly popular region for roe deer due to the Alpine foothills, the Mühlviertel and the flysch zone.