Three people have been killed and several injured in a shooting at a shopping mall in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Copenhagen Police received a report of a shooting at the Field’s shopping mall at 17:35 local time on July 3. At 17:48, police had arrested the suspect, who is described as a 22-year-old ethnic Dane. Police said on July 4 that their early investigations show that the man acted on his own and that the attack was random and not related to any religious beliefs.
The victims are two 17-year-old Danes and a man in his forties, reported by some media to be a Russian citizen residing in Denmark.
Security has been stepped up as a precaution. A Harry Styles concert, due to take place about a mile from the scene of the attack, was canceled. Large numbers of tourists and citizens have also gathered in Denmark in recent days for the start of the Tour de France bicycle race, which held its first stage in Copenhagen on Friday. Many riders, teams and spectators had been staying in Copenhagen ahead of transferring to France on Sunday evening or Monday morning.
The police said that the suspect was known to them, but only “peripherally” and that he is thought to suffer from mental health problems.
Obtaining a firearm in Denmark is not straightforward and Copenhagen has relatively strict gun laws, so how the gunman obtained the rifle and ammunition used in the attack will be a crucial part of the investigation.
