PRAGUE: A 24-year-old student killed around 15 people and injured dozens more at a Prague university on Thursday in the Czech Republic’s deadly shooting in last several decades, before officials said the attacker was “eliminated”.
The violence in Prague’s historic centre sparked evacuations, a huge response by heavily armed police personnel and warnings for citizens to stay indoors.
The shooting occurred at the Charles University’s Faculty of Arts, which sits near main tourist sites like the 14th-century Charles Bridge, AFP reported. “Around 15 people have lost their lives and as many as 24 have been injured,” police chief Martin Vondrasek told the media after the shooting.
Gunman Kills More than 15 People at Prague University: Report
Vondrasek said police officials started a search for the man before the shooting as his father had also been found dead in the village of Hostoun of Prague.
The attacker “left for Prague adding he wanted to kill himself,” Vondrasek added. Police disclosed earlier the attacker had also killed his father.
Police personnel searched the main Faculty of Arts compound where the attacker was expected to show up for a lecture, but he went to the faculty’s other compound nearby and they did not find him, APF maintained.
“Around 1359 GMT, we received the first information regarding shooting,” Police chief told reporters, saying the rapid response unit was on the site within just 12 minutes.
“At 1420 GMT, the officials in action told us regarding the attacker’s motionless body,” Vondrasek maintained, saying unconfirmed report showed the attacker had killed himself.
Vondrasek said the attacker was inspired by a “similar case that took place in Russia this autumn”, without going into more details and information.
Vondrasek further said that no police officer was injured in Thursday’s action while Police evacuated the compound, using a concert hall across the street as a temporary refuge for the evacuees.
Czech President Petr Pavel said he was “upset” by the violence and expressed “deep sorrow and sincere condolences to the families of the victims”. –Video By AFP
