Poland’s interior minister confirmed the gunman who killed six people in Krakow held “very radical” ultranationalist views.
Marcin Kierwiński, 49, addressed reporters at a news conference on Saturday, hours after the 25-year-old attacker opened fire in Main Square, the historic heart of Poland’s second-largest city. The assailant drove to multiple spots across the plaza and fired an automatic weapon at each stop before police shot and wounded him.
“Everything indicates that he was fascinated by far-right ideologies,” Kierwiński said.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk revealed a grim parallel discovery later that same day. Authorities found three bodies inside the gunman’s home in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski, a city roughly 93 miles northeast of Krakow. The victims were two women and a man, all close family members of the attacker.
“We have the next acts of this tragedy,” Tusk told reporters.
The Krakow assault left four women and two men dead. At least three of the female victims were Polish, and one of the slain was a U.K. Citizen. Police were still working to identify the remaining two deceased as of Saturday evening. Thirteen people remained hospitalized in serious condition, though that tally may include the gunman himself, who underwent surgery following the confrontation with police.
Krakow police spokesperson Katarzyna Cisło detailed the chaotic scene. The attacker wore military-style fatigues and a bulletproof vest, wielding a military-type long gun. Officers recovered additional weapons and ammunition from his vehicle. Even after being shot, he kept firing at police.
“He kept firing at the police even after being shot himself,” Cisło said.
The gunman engaged in what Cisło described as a “wild ride” around Main Square, wounding people at several locations before officers finally subdued him. She added that he appears to have acted alone. Two police officers were seriously injured in the exchange. Among the wounded, five were non-Poles, according to police commander Marek Boroń. Two victims were treated and released within hours.
Kacper Rekawek, a senior researcher at the International Center for Counterterrorism in The Hague, drew a disturbing pattern from the attacker’s presentation. The military gear, weapons and overall appearance matched those of other “extreme right lone actors” who have carried out attacks across Europe.
“We have had attempts before, but now we can say that these kinds of attacks have become successful in Poland,” Rekawek said.
The assault shattered a rare calm. Mass shootings are uncommon in Poland, a nation of 37 million where approximately 411,000 people hold gun permits. Interest in firearm ownership has been climbing, though it remained unclear Saturday whether the weapons used in the attack were legally obtained.
Krakow mayor Łukasz Gibała declared official mourning through Wednesday and insisted the city would remain open to visitors despite the bloodshed.
“The square will belong to us again,” Gibała said in a video posted on X.
Warsaw mayor Rafał Trzaskowski responded by ordering increased security measures, including road barriers, along main streets in the Polish capital’s old town.
The violence comes amid a troubling recent cluster of attacks in Poland. In mid-October, three school assaults in the central province of Mazovia occurred within four days, leaving one person dead and many wounded, including children.