Worshipper dies in church sword rampage

A MAN wielding a sword went on the rampage at a church in Germany yesterday, killing one worshipper and leaving several others seriously injured.

Police in Stuttgart said the man went "completely berserk" during a service being held by members of the local Tamil community at the Evangelical-Methodist Church in Zuffenhausen.

According to reports some of those wounded lost their limbs. One woman was transferred by helicopter to a hospital.

"We received a call, and officers who arrived saw a scene of absolute horror," said Sybille Ahlborn, a police spokeswoman.

"People were lying around the church with a variety of injuries, some serious. The man with the sword had to be subdued with pepper spray."

There were at least 70 people, mostly Indian and Sri Lankan, in the church when the man burst in waving the weapon.