As many as 100 police officers are currently involved in the search for a 40-year-old man, who is suspected of shooting and killing his six-year-old son and two adult friends on Thursday evening.

The shooting happened at around 10pm in an upscale neighbourhood of the town of Villingendorf, around 100km south of Stuttgart.

By the time police arrived at the murder scene the boy and an adult man had already died. A woman was still alive, but succumbed to her wounds as she was given emergency treatment.

The boy’s mother was also at the scene as the shooting happened, but was able to escape.

After police arrived at the house they heard shots being fired in a nearby forest. A helicopter was called in to take up the hunt by air, but the operation had to be called off due to fog reducing visibility.

The focus of the search is currently on the Autobahns in the southern state, while checks at state and national border crossings have been intensified.

The suspect has been named as Drazen D., a 40 year old, with short, dark hair and brown eyes. He is possibly driving a green Seat Ibiza, according to the Süddeutsche Zeitung.