Gunman kills six people in Krakow, Polish police say

(Bloomberg) — The gunman who killed six people in the historic Old Town district of Poland’s second-largest city on Saturday is likely a homegrown far-right extremist, according to Interior Minister Marcin Kierwinski.

The alleged perpetrator, a 24-year-old Polish national whose name has not been released, was wounded in a shootout with police near Krakow’s main square and taken to a hospital where he is undergoing surgery, Kierwinski said.

The suspect drove into Krakow’s main square and opened fire with an automatic rifle at what appeared to be random targets, according to government officials. Four women and two men were among those killed, while another 16 people were injured, regional police said.

Three police officers were wounded in the shooting, including one with multiple wounds in critical condition in a Krakow hospital, Kierwinski said.

“Everything indicates that he was fascinated by far-right ideology,” Kierwinski told reporters in Krakow. Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz said Poland was dealing with a terrorist act.

A video taken by a witness and shown by television station TVN24 showed the suspected gunman, apparently injured, lying on the pavement, dressed in military gear, a body armor and carrying a rifle. The defense minister said the suspect had no ties to the Polish military.

Kierwinski said the suspect had a firearm license and that his car was full of ammunition and other weapons believed to belong to his family.

Prime Minister Donald Tusk said police were investigating “all the circumstances of the attack”, while President Karol Nawrocki said he was in contact with the relevant authorities and expected a full explanation of the circumstances.

A district in Kraków, a city of around 800,000 inhabitants located about 250 km (150 mi) south of Warsaw, the UNESCO World Heritage Site is famous for its medieval architecture. It is a popular destination for tourists.

(Update with details of the suspect from the first paragraph.)

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