Krakow shooting suspect dies after killing six in Old Town
Investigators classify the attack as a terrorist offense after the 24-year-old man, who held ultranationalist views, was shot by police.
By Pedro Tanaka ·
Regional police confirmed on Monday that the 24-year-old man suspected of the Krakow shooting spree died in a hospital. He passed away that morning, two days after officers critically wounded him. The incident resulted in six deaths and 15 injuries across the city.
Police stated the suspect opened fire while driving past a square in Krakow's Old Town, a tourist-heavy district in Poland's second-largest city. Officers intervened while he was still firing. The two police officers who neutralized the threat are currently receiving medical treatment in a hospital.
Investigators are processing the event as a terrorist offense. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwinski described the attacker as holding radical and ultranationalist views. Authorities have not released details linking him to a specific extremist group. The suspect is also believed to have killed his parents and sister at their home in Ostrowiec Swietokrzyski before driving to Krakow. That location sits approximately 93 miles from the city center.
The six individuals killed in the Krakow attack included citizens from three different nations. Four victims were Polish, comprising three women and one man. An Austrian woman and a British man were the other two fatalities. Injured parties included people from Britain, Portugal, Russia, Germany, and Austria.
Local residents responded to the violence with acts of remembrance. Mourners placed flowers and candles at the scene in the central square. The city also halted the hourly St. Mary's Trumpet Call, a tradition maintained since World War II. The silence in the Main Square marked a specific tribute to the victims. A separate memorial service took place at St. Anne's Church, drawing large crowds of locals.
Gun violence of this scale remains rare in Poland. Approximately 411,000 residents hold valid firearm permits nationwide. Interest in private gun ownership has been rising in recent years, adding context to the public discussion surrounding the incident.
