Two people were killed and another critically injured after shots were fired at a machine-building company in the southwestern German state of Baden-Württemberg, DW reported citing police.

The shooting occurred after a masked individual entered the firm's premises in Bad Friedrichshall, a town some 60 kilometers (37.3 miles) north of Stuttgart, at around 5:45 p.m. local time (1645 GMT).

After deploying a helicopter as part of a manhunt, police said the prime suspect was apprehended by special forces in Sekach, a town 30km to the north.

Police said on Tuesday evening that the injured person remained in a critical condition.

"Two men were shot dead in Bad Friedrichshall in the early evening [and] another man was critically injured," local police said in a statement, adding:

"There is currently no danger to the population."

The two victims were reportedly workers at the company, which produces high-precision cogs and gears for machinery.

The mayor of Bad Friedrichshall, Timo Frey of the center-right Christian Democrats (CDU), said the company is well-known in the region and employs around 400 people in the town of 20,000.

Investigators said other company employees were present when the shooting took place and were being questioned.