According to Prime Minister Petr Fiala, the shooting wasn’t the work of terrorists.
PRAGUE—A mass shooting at the Philosophical Faculty of Charles University in Prague on Dec. 21 left at least 14 dead and 25 wounded.
Police say the 24-year-old shooter, a student, was inspired by a similar horrific event in Russia.
Czech Interior Minister Vit Rakusan described the shooting as “an unprecedentedly insane act that the Czech Republic has never seen in its history.”
According to Prague’s police chief, Martin Vondrasek, there was a huge arsenal of weapons and ammunition in the faculty building, and if it hadn’t been for the quick intervention of the police, the number of victims would’ve been many times higher.
No police officers or other emergency services personnel were injured in the crackdown on the shooter. According to Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala, the shooting wasn’t the work of terrorists or an organized group. He said the security forces assured him that they had the situation fully under control and that there was no danger to citizens.
Police are also investigating information that the young man was inspired by a similar terrorist act committed in Russia in the fall.
According to preliminary information, David Kozak, a 24-year-old student from Kladno in central Bohemia, was the attacker. After killing 14 people and wounding others, the attacker shot himself. He was also shot at by intervening police officers.
Video Below: At 0:19 a heroic journalist was literally screaming “Hey! I am right here! Shoot me! Shoot me!” to give other people time to get for cover.
“From the background checks so far, the man is a blank slate for us. We found him to be in legal possession of several firearms. There was nothing at all objectionable about his background,” Chief Vondrasek said, noting that there was no indication that the shooter had accomplices.
Police had no information that there was any other danger but couldn’t rule out a risk associated with items that may have been left at the school. A bomb squad was dispatched to the scene.
