At least 10 people, including two children, were killed and four others wounded in a shooting Wednesday following a bar fight in a western Montenegrin city, officials said. The shooter was on the run.
Police identified the attacker as Aco Martinovic, 45. He killed the owner of a bar in the town of Cetinje, the bar owner’s children and members of his own family, said Interior Minister Danilo Saranovic at a press conference.
“For now, we are focused on arresting him,” said Saranovic.
The police sent special forces to look for the attacker in Cetinje, located 30 kilometers north-west of the capital, Podgorica.
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The statement says the man fled armed after opening fire in the bar.
President Jakov Milatovic said he was “shocked and stunned” by the tragedy. “Instead of the joy of the holiday … we are gripped by sadness for the loss of innocent people,” said Milatovic on social media platform X.
Prime Minister Milojko Spajic went to the hospital where the injured were being treated and announced three days of fasting.
“This is a terrible tragedy that has affected us all,” said Spajic. “All police teams are out.”
Tiny Montenegro, with a population of about 620,000, is known for its shooting culture and many people traditionally own weapons.
Wednesday’s shooting was the second shooting incident in the past three years in Cetinje, Montenegro’s historic capital. The attacker also killed 10 people, including two children, in August 2022 before he was shot dead by a passer-by in Cetinje.
The RTCG report, which published Martinovic’s photo on its website, said he was known for his eccentric behavior and had been arrested for possession of illegal weapons.
The report says that he went home to get his gun and returned to the bar and opened fire, killing and injuring several people. He then went to another location where he killed the bar owner’s children and a woman, the report said.
The police urged residents to calm down and stay indoors, to avoid clashes between gangs.
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