Death Toll in Kraków Shooting Reaches 10 as Gunman Dies of His Wounds

A mass shooting occurred in the Main Square (Rynek Główny) of Kraków, in southern Poland, at about 3 p.m. local time on Saturday, November 7, when a man drove a car onto the square and opened fire at random on the crowd. Police said six people were killed and 16 injured in the square attack, including two police officers, and three more bodies were later found at the gunman's home, bringing the death toll linked to the incident to nine. The gunman was shot by police and taken to hospital.

Gunman drove onto the square and fired at random

According to a police statement posted on social media, the gunman drove onto the Main Square from the direction of Sławkowska Street at about 3 p.m. local time and began firing at people at random from his car. Police said the gunman was shot by officers while attempting to escape, was then arrested and taken to hospital, and has not yet been identified. A weapon and ammunition were secured at the scene, and police said they were not looking for anyone else.

PM says police investigating background; US ambassador condemns attack

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on social media that police were investigating the background and all the circumstances of the attack, calling it a tragic shooting; Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński has set out for Kraków. US Ambassador to Poland Tom Rose condemned the shooting as a savage and murderous attack. The casualty figures may still change, and police have asked people to avoid the area.

Suspect said to have admitted firing at random; identity still not released

Police and multiple outlets report the gunman is a Polish national who wore military-style tactical gear and used a long rifle. Police said the suspect admitted firing at random after his arrest; the motive is still under investigation. The victims have not yet been named, and the toll remains at least five killed and more than a dozen injured.

Death toll rises to six; two officers shot, one seriously

Małopolska police later updated the death toll from five to six in a post on social media; the regional governor's office confirmed four women and two men were killed and 15 people were wounded, including two police officers. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński said one officer was shot three times and was in a serious condition, undergoing surgery; the other officer was also wounded. Police denied reports that an officer had died and that a second gunman was involved, and said a large cache of weapons and ammunition was found in the gunman's car; a tram driver also reported his vehicle had been shot at. The victims have not yet been named.

Gunman was a 24-year-old Polish citizen who acted alone, police say

Kraków police and several news outlets later confirmed that the gunman was a 24-year-old Polish citizen who was wearing military-style clothing and a bulletproof vest and used an AR-15-style rifle, firing at random from a black Subaru at crowds in the square. Police said he was intercepted near the junction of Dietla and Stradomska streets and kept firing at officers even after being shot himself, before being wounded and detained; he is now being treated in hospital. Police reiterated that he acted alone and that several weapons and ammunition were found in his car; whether the firearms were legally held is not yet established. Police have not formally released the gunman's name, and the motive remains under investigation; the victims have not yet been named.

November 7 evening update: interior minister says gunman held 'very radical views'

Polish Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński told a press conference in Kraków on the evening of November 7 that everything indicates the gunman acted alone and held “very radical views”. Polish media, citing police sources, unofficially named the suspect as Michał O., 24, from Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski in central Poland; he held a firearms permit and had no criminal record. The defence minister confirmed he never served in the Polish Armed Forces. Police have still not formally announced the gunman's name; the motive remains under investigation and the victims have not been identified. The death toll remains six.

November 7 evening update: injured rises to 16; interior minister says gunman held ultranationalist views

The Associated Press reported late on November 7 that the number of injured in the Kraków shooting had risen to 16, from 15 earlier; the death toll remains six. Polish Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński told a press conference that the gunman was a 24-year-old Polish citizen, born in 2002, who held 'very radical views' and was fascinated by far-right ideology, and that everything indicated he acted alone; large quantities of firearms and ammunition were found in his car. Police have still not formally released the gunman's name. The victims have not been identified and the motive remains under investigation.

November 7 evening update: three bodies found at gunman's home; defence minister calls it terror

Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on the evening of November 7 that police had found three bodies — two women and a man — inside the gunman's home in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski, about 150 km northeast of Kraków, with drone footage showing bodies inside the house. Tusk said the dead were "likely close family members" of the gunman, but their identities have not been officially confirmed and police are still examining the property; it is not yet established when the three died or how their deaths relate to the square attack. Counted together, the deaths linked to the incident would reach nine, but the two scenes must be reported separately. Of the six people killed in the square, at least three women were Polish and one was a British citizen; two victims remain unidentified. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński said 16 injured people were being treated in Kraków hospitals, 13 of them in the most serious condition. Defence Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz described the attack as an "act of terror" against the people of Kraków. The city of Kraków declared mourning through November 11, cancelling municipal events, and President Karol Nawrocki declared national mourning for November 8–9. Police put the gunman's age at 24, while the Associated Press reported 25; his name has still not been formally released and the motive remains under investigation.

November 7 evening update: three bodies at gunman's home believed to be his parents and sister; PM names two officers

Polish media reported on the evening of November 7, citing sources, that the three bodies found at the gunman's home are believed to be his parents and sister: his father Janusz O. was a member of the "Świt" shooting club in nearby Starachowice and held 11 registered sporting firearms, and the black Subaru the gunman drove was registered to his father. Police have still not formally confirmed the identities of the three dead, and Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński urged against rushing to conclusions until police finish examining the house. Prime Minister Donald Tusk named the two officers who exchanged fire with the gunman — Senior Constable Jakub Kulik and Senior Constable Artur Morański — calling them "true heroes." Four of the six people killed in the square have now been identified, including one foreign national, and five of the 15 injured are foreigners, from Austria, Germany, Portugal, Russia and Britain, according to the Interior Ministry. The gunman is seriously injured but in stable condition, still in hospital under police guard. The toll is unchanged — six dead in the square and three at the home, two separate scenes, nine deaths linked to the incident in total.

November 7 late update: two injured discharged; Tusk says Poland has never faced such a drastic case of terrorism

The Associated Press reported late on November 7 that two of the people injured in the Kraków shooting were treated and released within hours of the attack, and the rest remain in hospital. Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Poland had never had such a drastic case of terrorism before and that the Kraków attack should be called terrorism; the defence minister had already described it as an act of terror against the people of Kraków. Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski announced increased security measures in the capital's old town, including road barriers along main streets. The toll is unchanged — six killed in the square and three bodies found at the gunman's home; the identities of the three were later confirmed by police as the gunman's parents and his 21-year-old sister; the motive remains under investigation.

(Sources: Małopolska Police; Reuters; BBC; The Independent; The New York Times; TVN24; Energy Radio; Associated Press; City of Kraków; Sky News; Wirtualna Polska.)

Early November 8 update: total death toll confirmed at nine; two days of national mourning

Multiple outlets reported in the early hours of November 8 that the total death toll linked to the incident stands at nine: six in the Main Square and three at the gunman's home. Tusk said there are strong indications the three bodies at the home are the gunman's immediate family, but police later confirmed their identities as the gunman's parents and his 21-year-old sister, without releasing their cause or time of death. President Karol Nawrocki declared two days of national mourning for November 8 and 9; Kraków itself is in mourning through November 11. The two officers who shot and stopped the gunman remain in hospital, one of them in critical condition; two other injured people have been discharged. Prosecutors have since confirmed the gunman is 24-year-old Michał O.; the motive remains under investigation.

November 8 update: cache of weapons found in gunman's car; military says he was not a soldier

Multiple outlets reported on November 8 that police found a cache of weapons in the boot of the black Subaru driven by the gunman, including a DB carbine, a P99 pistol, a Glock pistol and a Chinese-made bulletproof vest. The gunman is believed to have been a cadet at a military school about 80 miles from Kraków; Poland's military said he had never served in the armed forces and that the uniform and bulletproof vest he wore had been self-assembled rather than official equipment. The two officers who shot and stopped the gunman remain in hospital. The identities of the three bodies found at his home were later confirmed by police as the gunman's parents and his 21-year-old sister, and the motive remains under investigation.

November 8 update: prosecutors confirm gunman is 24-year-old Michał O.; gunman undergoing second operation

Prosecutors’ spokesman Tomasz Waszczuk confirmed that the detained man is 24-year-old Michał O., from Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski; this is the first formal confirmation of the gunman’s name by the authorities (only the initial of the surname was released). The gunman was wounded in the shoot-out with police and is undergoing a second operation in hospital, in a serious condition. The two officers who shot and stopped the gunman remain in hospital, one of them in critical condition; two other injured people have been discharged. The identities of the three bodies found at his home were later confirmed by police as the gunman's parents and his 21-year-old sister, and the motive remains under investigation.

November 8 update: identities of three bodies at gunman's home confirmed — his parents and 21-year-old sister

Polish police confirmed on the morning of November 8 that the three bodies found at the gunman's home in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski are his parents and his 21-year-old sister: his father was 53 and his mother 52. The confirmed death toll linked to the incident is now nine — six in the Main Square and three at the gunman's home. Poland's president declared two days of national mourning for November 8 and 9, and Kraków itself is in mourning through November 11. The gunman remains in hospital in a serious condition, and the motive is still under investigation.

Update, November 8: Prosecutors open terrorism investigation; six murder charges prepared

Poland's National Prosecutor's Office announced on Sunday, November 8, that it has opened an investigation into the Kraków shooting as a terrorist offence, covering the killing of six people with a firearm and the attempted murder of many others, including police officers. Prosecutor Tomasz Waszczuk told ABC News that prosecutors are preparing six murder charges, which could rise to nine if the gunman is established as responsible for the deaths of his parents and sister. Office spokesman Daniel Prokopowicz said it was "highly likely" the killings at the home in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski and in Kraków were carried out by the same person, but that investigations were ongoing. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński reiterated that the attacker was influenced by far-right and ultranationalist ideology, though a motive has not been established. The suspect, 24, remains in hospital in critical condition. Poland is observing two days of national mourning, November 8-9, and Kraków is in mourning through November 11. The death toll remains nine.

November 8 update: Justice minister confirms terrorism investigation; suspect faces separate murder charge over home deaths

Polish Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek said on X on Sunday (November 8) that the suspect is under investigation for murder in connection with the six people shot dead in Kraków, and that the act is being treated as a terrorist offence because it was "aimed at seriously intimidating a large number of people". Żurek added that the suspect faces a separate murder charge over the three deaths at his home in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski. Regional governor Krzysztof Klęczar said the suspect remains in hospital in critical condition; the motive is still under investigation.

Update, November 8: Both wounded officers out of comas; square victims include British and Austrian citizens

As of November 8, both police officers wounded by gunfire in the Kraków shooting have emerged from their comas; one of them was himself shot while subduing the gunman. Polish media, citing police sources, report that the six people killed in the Main Square were four Polish nationals, one British citizen and one Austrian citizen. The gunman remains in hospital in critical condition; prosecutors have opened a terrorism investigation, and the motive is still under investigation. The three bodies found at the gunman's home have been confirmed as his parents, aged 53 and 52, and his 21-year-old sister; whether he killed them is still under investigation.

Update, November 9: the six square victims identified

Prosecutors and police have now identified the six people killed in the square: a 51-year-old Austrian woman, a 32-year-old British man, three Polish women aged 47, 53 and 61, and a Polish man aged about 50. Autopsies of all nine victims begin on Monday; Krakow's mayor has called a solidarity vigil on the Main Market Square at 8 p.m. local time on Monday. The gunman remains in critical condition and cannot yet be questioned; prosecutors will decide on Monday what legal steps to take against him. The motive remains under investigation.

Update, November 9: gunman dies of his wounds; death toll reaches 10

Police in the Małopolska region announced on X on Monday morning that the 24-year-old gunman, Michał O., had died in hospital: “We would like to inform you that the perpetrator of the tragic events died in hospital early this morning.” He was shot in several places — abdomen, thigh and chest — by officers in the Main Market Square on Saturday, remained in critical condition, and died after a second operation. The death toll linked to the incident now stands at 10: six killed in the square, three at the gunman's home (his parents and sister), plus the gunman himself. Autopsies of the nine victims begin on Monday; Krakow's mayor has called a solidarity vigil on the Main Market Square at 8 p.m. local time on Monday. Police have also launched a blood appeal for Senior Constable Jakub Kulik, who is fighting for his life after being shot in the chest while confronting the gunman. The prosecutors' terrorism investigation continues; the motive remains undetermined, and the legal steps against the gunman that prosecutors were due to decide on Monday are now moot.

Update, November 9: Prosecutors say motive still unknown; government rows back on far-right claim

Przemysław Nowak, spokesperson for the National Prosecutor's Office, told a press conference on Monday that investigators have still not established the gunman's motive; a yellow Gadsden flag bearing a snake and the words “Don't tread on me” was found in his room. Poland's Central Bureau for Combating Cybercrime has detained five people for glorifying the attack online. An Interior Ministry spokeswoman told TOK FM radio that the gunman's clothing carried many different emblems, which experts are still analysing. Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek said the investigation will continue despite the gunman's death, to establish whether he acted alone or was inspired by a group; he also said a Russian hybrid-operation link had “not been ruled out,” without offering evidence, and the claim remains unconfirmed. Police recovered four weapons from the gunman and his car — two AR-15-style rifles and two pistols — plus about 500 spare rounds; prosecutors said he had held a firearms permit since March for one rifle and one pistol. Government officials on Monday rowed back on the interior minister's Saturday claim that the gunman was fascinated by far-right ideology, with spokespeople urging restraint until the authorities have full information.

Update, November 9: Prosecutors say no evidence to attribute a particular ideology to gunman

A prosecution office spokesman said on Monday that investigators “do not have findings that we could, in a responsible way, categorically state that he was inspired by any particular ideology,” that it is “far too early” to comment on the motive, and that they have “not found any obvious symbols that are generally associated with a particular political movement, whether far right or far left.” Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek said the case “looks like” a lone-actor attack, but that this is not established. The Associated Press now identifies the gunman by his full name, Michal Oksinski, while police officially still give only “Michał O.” A government spokesman urged restraint until the authorities have full information; Law and Justice leader Jarosław Kaczyński called the interior minister's far-right claim a “blatant lie.”

Update, November 9 (evening): Thousands join silent march

Thousands of people took part in a silent march through Kraków on Monday evening, joined by President Karol Nawrocki and Prime Minister Donald Tusk. Marchers followed part of the route the gunman drove while firing and lit memorial candles at the spots where people were killed. Tusk wrote on X that thousands of Poles had gathered in Kraków to pay tribute to the victims of the November 7 attack. Prosecutors say the gunman's motive has still not been established, and the investigation continues.

Update, 10 November: justice minister says gunman visited Breivik-related websites; signs of far-right extremism

Polish Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek told Radio Krakow on Tuesday (10 November) that the gunman, Michał Oksiński, had visited websites about Anders Behring Breivik, the Norwegian mass killer, and that there was 'a very strong indication of right-wing extremism' behind his actions. Żurek added that a Gadsden flag — a yellow flag featuring a snake and the words 'Don't tread on me' — found in Oksiński's room had been used by far-right groups in the United States, and that symbols found at his workplace 'may point toward this line of inquiry'; a silencer was also found in the car he used. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński said on Tuesday that he was not taking back his earlier remarks about the gunman's far-right leanings, but was waiting for investigators' findings. Prosecutors said on Monday that it was still too early to say the gunman had been inspired by any particular ideology.