Wiesbaden (dpa/lhe) – A 57-year-old man threatened children playing in Merenberg, western Hesse, with a gun because they had thrown a snowball at his car. As a police spokesman reported on Monday, a group of children threw snowballs at passing cars on Friday evening. The 57-year-old is said to have stopped and threatened the children to shoot them if they did it again.
When the man met the group of children again a little later at a kiosk, he said he aimed a gun at them. The children took refuge in the kiosk and sought help from the operator. The children’s parents then called the police. While the police were still recording the incident, the man drove by again. A police patrol followed him and stopped him. During the subsequent check, the officers found a pistol in the vehicle, for which the man could not present a gun license. The weapon was secured.