Gunman who went on deadly shooting spree in Montenegro dies by suicide: NPR

Police investigators work at the scene of a shooting in Cetinje, located 22 miles west of Podogrica, Montenegro, Wednesday, Jan. 1, 2025.

Risto Bozovic/AP

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Risto Bozovic/AP

CETINJE, Montenegro – There was shock and horror in Montenegro on Thursday after a gunman fatally shot 12 people, including two children, in a western town before killing himself.

At least four others were wounded in the shooting in Cetinje on Wednesday that followed a bar fight, officials said. This was the second such incident in the city in the past three years.

The shooter, identified as 45-year-old Aco Martinović, killed the owner of the bar, the bar owner’s children and his own family members, officials have said.

The attacker, who first fled after the vandalism, was later located and surrounded by the police. He died after shooting himself in the head, Interior Minister Danilo Šaranović said.

Residents of Cetinje were stunned and grief-stricken. Vanja Popović, whose relatives are among the victims, said that “we are all in shock.”

“How can I feel after this?” Popović said. “Nobody expected it. You can’t even ask anybody anything.”

The police had deployed a special unit to search for the perpetrator in the city, which is located about 30 kilometers northwest of Podgorica, the capital. All roads in and out of the city were blocked for hours as police swarmed the streets.

Šaranović said the shooter had died while being taken to a hospital in the capital, succumbing to “the severity of his injuries.”

Officials have said the attacker was in the bar all day with other patrons when the fight broke out. He then went home, brought back a weapon and opened fire around 5:30 p.m

Prosecutor Andrijana Nastić said Thursday that the attacker went to six locations during the shooting, including the last one where he shot himself.

Four men were killed in the bar, Nastić said. The shooter then moved on to another location where he killed four more people and then two children at a third location. He then went on to kill 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 starting on Thursday, and all planned New Year celebrations have been canceled across the country.

Prime Minister Milojko Spajić said the government may try to introduce a total ban on weapons, “because after this we have to ask ourselves who should be allowed to have weapons in Montenegro.”

The small Adriatic nation, which has a population of around 620,000 people, is known for its gun culture and many people traditionally carry weapons.

In August 2022, in Cetinje, the historic capital of Montenegro, an attacker killed 10 people, including two children, before being shot dead by a passerby.

Police have said the suspect in Wednesday’s shooting received a suspended sentence in 2005 for violent behavior and had appealed his most recent conviction for illegal gun possession. Montenegrin media have reported that he was known for erratic and violent behavior.

“Instead of holiday cheer … we have been gripped by grief over the loss of innocent lives,” Montenegrin President Jakov Milatović said in a post on X.