Police are investigating videos on social media showing the suspect with guns and in one case pointing a barrel at his head, raising questions about his mental health.
Young man armed with a rifle killed three people and injured several others in Copenhagen shopping centerannounced the police, who arrested the suspect, a 22-year-old Dane.
The young man was arrested without resistance after police arrived at the Fields department store, about halfway from the center of the Danish capital to its airport.
“We have three dead and several injured, three of whom are in a critical condition,” informed during an extraordinary press conference o Seren Thomasenthe Danish capital police officer in charge of the investigation.
The motive of the attacker remains unknown at this stage. According to Mr Thomassen, the 22-year-old was known to the policebut “regionally”. “He’s not someone we particularly knew,” ehsaid.
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The victims are a man in his forties and two youths, whose ages were not specified. No other information was given about the dead.
Copenhagen’s largest hospital, Rigshospitalet, said it had admitted a “small number of patients”. He hastily called more doctors and other nursing staff to their positions.
“On social networking sites we see scenarios floating around that (the attacker) had a racial motive, or some other motive, but I can’t say that we have anything to support that at this particular time,” noted Mr. Thomassen.
However, police are investigating videos uploaded to social media sites showing the suspect with weapons and in one case to point a barrel at his head, element that raises questions about his mental health.
Earlier, Copenhagen police said they did not rule out the possibility that the attack was a “terrorist” act. He also noted that he is doing the case that the perpetrator acted alone.
Two days after the Tour de France cyclists passed through the Danish capital and scenes of jubilation, heavy police forces were deployed at the scene of the massacre and elsewhere in Copenhagen.
The shooting began around 17:30 (local time; 18:30 Greek time), causing visitors to flee in panic. There were many people in the area, mostly young men and women who intended to go later to a concert by British pop star Harry Styles, which was cancelled.
According to eyewitnesses who spoke to Danish media, the suspect tried to lure victims, for example by saying his gun was fake, to get them to come closer. “He was psychopathic enough to go after people, but he wasn’t running,” an eyewitness pointed out to the public television network DR.
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En person er anholdt i konsidering med skyderiet i Fields. Vi har fornuvërnes ikke öhtië for at kälte mere om indässtäts identitet. Vi er massivt tilstede i Fields og arbeiter på at danne os et omlarvis. I will update here, så snart vi kan #politidk https://t.co/84Df2mspVD
— Københavns Politi (@KobenhavnPoliti) July 3, 2022
When the first shots rang out, about a hundred people were seen running from the mall, according to footage from various cameras. Others simply hid inside.
“Suddenly we heard gunshots, about ten, and we ran to hide in the toilets,” explained Isabella, who hid in there for about two hours. “I was afraid, many were crying,” he added.
“They were running for their lives”
A crisis management team was established, according to mayor of Copenhagen, Sophie Hastorp Andersen, while a telephone line for psychological support was put into operation.
“My daughters had gone to see Harry Styles. They called to tell me that someone was shooting. They were in a restaurant when it happened,” narrated by Hans Christian Stolza 53-year-old Swede who ran frantically on the spot to find his children. “At first we thought that some people were running because they had seen Harry Styles, then we realized that it was people who were seized by panic (…). They were running for (their) lives,” added his daughter, Cassandra.
“My team and I are praying for all those affected by the Copenhagen shopping mall shooting. I’m shocked”, the British singer said via Snapchat.
THE Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen for her part, she emphasized that “Denmark was hit by an inhumane attack” yesterday: “People were killed. Even more were injured. Innocent families, shopping or out to eat. Children, teenagers and adults”.
“Our beautiful and usually so safe capital changed in an instant,” added Ms Frederiksen. “I want to encourage Danes to stand by each other, to support each other in this difficult time.”
THE Queen Margrethe II of Denmark and foreign leaders expressed their condolences, as did the Tour de France organizing committee.
The most recent attack using firearms in Copenhagen took place on February 14 and 15, 2015, when a jihadist killed two people and wounded five others.
Yesterday’s carnage in Copenhagen came days after an attack in neighboring Norway, when two people were killed by a lone gunman in Oslo.
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