Kraków mass shooting: gunman who killed six dies in hospital
The 24-year-old Polish man who opened fire on Kraków's main square on Saturday died in hospital on Monday morning. Six people were killed in the attack, including a British and an Austrian national.
Suspected Kraków gunman dead – six victims, including two foreigners
The alleged perpetrator of the Kraków mass shooting died in hospital early on Monday, police confirmed. According to bbc.com, the 24-year-old Polish man opened fire on Kraków's busy main square on Saturday at shortly before 15:00 local time, in the city centre of Poland's second-largest city.
Armed police arrived at the scene within three minutes, engaged the suspect in a gunfight, and shot him – thereby preventing a further bloodshed, authorities said. The suspect was identified as a 24-year-old Polish man by authorities, though his name was not made public.
Six dead, including British and Austrian nationals
Six people were killed in the attack: four women and two men. Four of the victims were Polish nationals; besides them, a British and an Austrian woman also died. A total of sixteen people were taken to hospital, including five foreigners, two police officers and the perpetrator himself. According to the Interior Ministry, the foreigners came from Austria, Great Britain, Germany, Portugal and Russia.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said that during a search of the gunman's home following the attack, three bodies were found – those of two women and one man. The Polish police confirmed on Sunday that the victims were the suspected perpetrator's 53-year-old father, 52-year-old mother and 21-year-old sister. According to Polish media, the suspect held a firearms licence and may have obtained the weapons from the family home.
"Far-right ideologies" inspired the attacker
In the hours following the shooting, a minister stated that according to initial investigations, the man was inspired by "far-right ideologies" and, without further details, also called him an "ultranationalist".
Tusk travelled to Kraków and, in connection with the attack, stated: "Poland has never experienced such a serious terrorist act... because that is what we must call this cruel attack on people's lives here in Kraków." Following the tragedy, Poland declared a two-day period of national mourning.
Doctors rushed to the scene
On Sunday, one of the surgeons – who was dining with a colleague near the main square when the shots rang out – recounted how he hurried to the scene. Professor Michał Pędziwiatr spoke to the BBC: "We saw the shooting. We decided to help the victims as soon as possible. We rushed to where the shooting was happening and began rescue operations, because there were no ambulances available and there were no healthcare professionals nearby."
Pędziwiatr said that his colleague – identified by local media as Dr Mateusz Wierda – used his hand to apply pressure to the wound of the most seriously injured police officer, thereby buying time until the ambulance arrived. According to Sunday reports, both injured police officers regained consciousness from their comas.
Witnesses: panic and flight on the main square
Witnesses present near the square described panic and chaos. Ruby Catherine Warren from London heard shots and shouted to friends to run – eventually they sought shelter in a nearby hotel. Tom Brook from West Yorkshire was in a nearby McDonald's when he heard shots and saw people running for cover. "I went out to the square and saw paramedics treating someone in front of a shop, and about 20 metres further away there was a corpse covered with thermal insulation foil," he said.
British Prime Minister Andy Burnham said he was "shaken and saddened by the terrible shooting in Kraków" and assured Poland's people of the solidarity of the United Kingdom. The main square was reopened to visitors on Sunday evening after security cordons were lifted.
Source: Google News HU — Crime (hu)