Krakow Shooter Dies After Police Fire Stops Attack in Market Square

Polish police confirmed early Monday that the man suspected of killing six people in Krakow has died in a hospital. Officers shot the 24-year-old suspect during the attack that began at midday on Saturday in Main Market Square.

The historic square serves as a commercial hub and tourist destination in Poland's second-largest city. Authorities labeled the incident a far-right terrorist attack. Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek stated on X that the gunman aimed to seriously intimidate a large number of people. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński noted the attacker used an automatic rifle and was fascinated by far-right ideologies.

Four women and two men died in the square. Three women and one man were Polish citizens. The other two victims were a man from the United Kingdom and a woman from Austria. More than a dozen others were injured, including two police officers who stopped the gunman. Regional official Krzysztof Jan Klęczar said the officers remained in serious condition as of Sunday.

Police discovered three additional bodies in an apartment in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyskie, a city roughly 93 miles northeast of Krakow. Deputy Inspector Andrzej Fijołek said the victims are believed to be the shooter's parents and sister. Żurek added that the suspect faced murder charges for those killings. Five foreigners from the United Kingdom, Portugal, Russia, Germany, and Austria were among the wounded.

Witnesses described panic spreading through the busy square. Marie-Ange Collaer, a visitor from Brussels, wrote on Facebook that she and her family ran for their lives and hid from flying bullets. Both police officers who engaged the shooter were conscious by Sunday afternoon, and authorities described their actions as heroic.