CETINJE, Montenegro (AP) — Shock and consternation reigned in Montenegro Thursday after a gunman fatally shot 12 people, including two children, in a western city before killing himself.
At least four others were injured on Wednesday in the shooting in Cetinje, which followed a bar fight, officials said. This was the second incident in the city in the past three years.
The gunman, identified as 45-year-old Aco Martinović, killed the bar owner, the bar owner's children and his own relatives, officials said.
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The attacker, who initially fled after the rampage, was later located and surrounded by police. He died after shooting himself in the head, Interior Minister Danilo Šaranović said.
The inhabitants of Cetinje were stunned and sad. Vanja Popović, whose relatives are among the victims, said that “we are all in shock.”
“How can I feel after this?” said Popovic. “No one expected it. You can't even ask anyone anything.”
Police had sent a special unit to search for the attacker in the city, located about 30 kilometers northwest of the capital Podgorica. All roads in and out of the city were blocked for hours as police swarmed the streets.
Šaranović said the gunman died while being taken to a hospital in the capital and succumbed to the “severity of his injuries.”
Officials have said the attacker had been sitting at the bar all day with other patrons when the brawl broke out. He then went home, brought a gun and opened fire around 5:30 p.m
Prosecutor Andrijana Nastić said on Thursday that the attacker went to six locations during the shooting, including the last one, where he shot himself.
Four men were killed at the bar, Nastić said. The gunman then moved on to another location where he killed four more people, and then two children at a third location. He then killed two more people at two other locations before finally shooting himself, Nastić said.
“Further investigation will determine the exact circumstances of the events,” she added.
The government has declared three days of national mourning from Thursday and all planned New Year's festivities have been canceled across the country.
Prime Minister Milojko Spajić said the government could try to impose a total ban on weapons “because after this we have to ask ourselves who is allowed to have weapons in Montenegro.”
The small country on the Adriatic Sea, which has a population of about 620,000, is known for its gun culture and many people have traditionally owned guns.
In August 2022, an attacker in Cetinje, Montenegro's historic capital, killed ten people, including two children, before being shot and killed by a passerby.
Police have said the suspect in Wednesday's 2005 shooting has been given a suspended sentence for violent conduct and has appealed his latest conviction for illegal gun possession. Montenegrin media have reported that he was known for his erratic and violent behavior.
“Instead of holiday joy… we are gripped by sadness over the loss of innocent lives,” Montenegro President Jakov Milatović said in a post on X.
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Jovana Gec and Dušan Stojanović contributed to this report from Belgrade, Serbia.
