The shooting that took place on Sunday in a shopping center in Copenhagen left at least three people dead, a man in his forties and two young people, and several injured, including three in critical condition, according to a provisional report from the authorities.
Police say a suspect, a 22-year-old Dane, has been arrested. Armed according to witnesses with an imposing rifle, he was arrested without violence shortly after the arrival of the police near the large Fields shopping mall, located between the city center and the airport of the Danish capital. .
According to the first elements of the investigation, the suspect has a psychiatric history. He is known to the authorities “but only peripherally,” Copenhagen Police Chief Inspector Søren Thomassen told a press conference. “He’s not someone we particularly know.”
Videos posted online
“On social networks, we see flourishing that it would be a racist motive, or another form of motive, but I cannot say that we have anything which supports that at this moment”, specified the head of the investigation. The police, however, confirmed that they are investigating videos published online claiming to show the suspect with weapons, the barrel of which he points at his temple.
Two days after the passage of the Tour de France
Two days after the Tour de France passed through the Danish capital, with great scenes of jubilation, a large police force was deployed at the scene of the shooting and in several places in Copenhagen.
The killing occurred at the end of the afternoon provoking a movement of panic. Many visitors were there before a concert by British star Harry Styles in a nearby large hall, which was canceled in the evening.
He was psychopathic enough to go stalk people
According to witnesses interviewed by Danish media, the suspect tried to entrap victims, saying for example that his weapon was fake to entice them to get closer. “He was psychopathic enough to go stalk people, but he didn’t run,” said a witness interviewed by public television DR.
When the first shots were heard, more than a hundred people rushed outside the mall, according to footage of the incident. Others were forced to hide inside.
“All of a sudden we heard gunshots, I heard ten shots, and we ran all we could to take refuge in the toilets”, explained to DR Isabella, who remained hidden there for two hours. “I was scared, a lot of people were crying.”
A crisis unit was triggered, according to the mayor of Copenhagen Sophie Haestorp Andersen, as well as a psychological care center.
The last attack in Copenhagen dates back to February 14 and 15, 2015, when a series of Islamist-motivated shootings left two dead and five injured.