Serbia: Second mass shooting in two days leaves 8 dead, suspect held

In the aftermath of the killing of eightpeople in a shooting in the Siberiantown of Mladenovac's Dubona village, lateThursday (May 4),Serbian police arrested on Friday a gunman suspected of carrying out the attack. This was the second mass shooting in the country this week. The incident also resulted in the wounding of at least 14 othersin a village near Belgrade.

"The suspect U.B., born in 2002, has been apprehended in the vicinity of the city of Kragujevac, he is suspected of killing eight people and wounding 14 overnight," the Serbian Interior Ministry said in a statement. The ministry added that investigation is currently underway.

Serbia's President Aleksandar Vucic is expected to address the nation at around 10:30 a.m. (0830 GMT).

Add WION as a Preferred Source

The incident comes a day after theBalkan country witnessed a school shooting by a 13-year-old.

The incident occurred afteran unknown gunman opened fire with an automatic weaponfrom a moving vehicle, reported the local media. CNN affiliate channel N1 and public broadcaster RTS reported earlier that theshooter remains at large, and a warrant has been issued for a 21-year-old male suspect.

Serbia’s Interior Ministry spokesperson said the incident took place at 11:00 pm (local time) on Thursday night, as per CNN.Serbian Interior Minister Bratislav Gasic called the shooting “a terrorist act,” as per a report byRTS.

The report added that police havecordoned off the area. Images and videos from the scene showed multiple ambulance and police vehicles.

According to news agency AFP, aheavy police presence was deployed and numerous ambulances rushed to the scene, while helicopters were flying over the area.

N1 reported, that allspecial police units including the anti-terrorism unit, helicopter unit, and police forces from the cities of Belgrade and Smederevo were engaged in the manhunt.

Notably, until this week,despite the country’s high rate of gun ownership, mass shootings were rare. That changed when a 13-year-old boy shot dead nine and injured seven at a schoolin the capital Belgrade before he surrendered.

School shooting inBelgrade on Wednesday

Serbia's Ministry of Internal Affairs said in a statement on Facebook that it was informed at 8:40 am(local time) that a school shooting had occurred at the Vladislav Ribnikar Elementary School in Vračar, an upscale area of the Serbian capital.

The shooter was later identified only as KK, was aseventh-grade student who reportedly opened fire from his father's gun.

"We have had too much violence for too long,"psychologist Zarko Trebjesanin told N1, adding that, "Children copy models."

Serbia'sInterior Ministry, on Thursday, also issued a warning togun owners asking them to "store their guns with care, locked up in safes or closets so they are out of reach of others, particularly children."

WATCH WION LIVE HERE

You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.