Medicine for psychological illness found at co-pilot's home: Reports

Berlin, Mar 29: German police have found medical treatments for psychological illness at the home of the co-pilot suspected of deliberately crashing a jet into the French Alps, killing 149 people and himself, a German newspaper said on March 28.

Investigators made the discovery in a search of the home of Andreas Lubitz in the western city of Duesseldorf and seized a number "of medicines for the treatment of psychological illness", Welt am Sonntag weekly said.

"The 27-year-old has been treated by several neurologists and psychiatrists," it quoted an unidentified high-ranking investigator as saying, in excerpts released ahead of Sunday's edition. It said no evidence that Lubitz had a drugs or alcohol dependency problem had been found.

It added that the Germanwings co-pilot was suffering from being overstressed and was severely depressive, according to personal notes found.

Questioned by AFP, French and German investigators declined to confirm or deny the report. German prosecutors believe Lubitz hid an illness from his airline and had been written off sick on the day of the air disaster.

On Friday they said searches of his homes netted "medical documents that suggest an existing illness and appropriate medical treatment", including "torn-up and current sick leave notes, among them one covering the day of the crash".

They did not specify the illness but earlier media reports have suggested he was depressed. The black box voice recorder indicates that he locked his captain out of the cockpit on Tuesday and deliberately flew Flight 4U 9525 into a mountainside as his captain desperately tried to reopen the door, French officials say.

PTI