The bodies of two women and a man have been found at the home of the suspect in Saturday’s mass shooting in Krakow, Poland. Polish prime minister Donald Tusk said the three were believed to be members of the suspect’s family.
Six people were killed and 16 wounded when a gunman opened fire in the city’s Main Market Square at about 3pm on Saturday. Poland’s defence minister described the shooting as an “act of terror”.
The suspect, a 25-year-old Polish citizen, opened fire with an automatic weapon. At a news conference, interior minister Marcin Kierwiński said the man was fascinated by far-right ideology and held “very radical” and “ultra-nationalistic” views.
Four women and two men were killed, one of them a British citizen, Polish police said. Three of the victims were Polish women and the remaining two victims had not been identified.
The injured included two police officers, one of whom is in a serious condition after being shot three times in an exchange of fire with the alleged attacker. There are also five foreigners among those wounded.
A tram driver reported that at about 3pm, his vehicle was shot at by a man in a moving car near the main square, the Krakow municipal transport company said. The window to the tram driver’s cabin was shattered.
Late on Saturday night, Tusk confirmed the discovery of three bodies at the suspect’s home.
On Saturday evening, government spokesperson Adam Szłapka wrote on X: “Today’s event in Krakow has shaken all of Poland,” adding that Tusk was “on his way to Krakow”.
The justice minister, Waldemar Żurek, wrote on X that authorities would “ensure that the perpetrator of this crime is held fully accountable and severely punished”.
The Polish president, Karol Nawrocki, said he was “deeply concerned by reports of the tragic events” in Kraków, and that his thoughts are with victims, those injured and their families.
Earlier this year, it was reported reported that the number of legally owned firearms in Poland surpassed one million for the first time.
Poland issued a record 50,700 gun permits in 2025. The number of active permits registered in 2025 was almost double the number registered in 2015, according to the police statistics cited in a Euronews report. – Guardian