'Covid-worried' German state finance minister found dead

The mutilated body of Thomas Schafer, the Finance Minister of Hesse, where the country's financial centre Frankfurt is, was found on a high-speed train line in the town of Hochheim, police said, local media reported.

Police said that it seemed to be a suicide case and investigations were on.

The body was found by some passers-by, who informed paramedics, but they were unable to identify the remains due to the extensive injuries.

Investigation confirmed the identity of the man as Schafer and that the death was likely a suicide. No further details were available.

Schafer, 54, left a note about the reasons for killing himself, a German daily said, citing sources close to the investigation.

According to local media in Hesse, Schafer regularly appeared in public in recent days, for example, to inform the public about financial assistance during the coronavirus crisis.

From Chancellor Angela Merkel's center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), he had been active in state politics for more than two decades and was finance minister for almost 10 years.