Shooter goes on rampage in Denmark mall

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Police and an ambulance respond to a shooting at a mall in Copenhagen, Denmark, on Sunday. Associated Press/Photo by Olafur Steinar Gestsson/Ritzau Scanpix

A 22-year-old man is in custody after opening fire in a busy shopping center on the outskirts of Copenhagen on Sunday. The shooter killed a Danish girl and boy, both 17, and a 47-year-old Russian man. Four others were hospitalized with gunshot wounds. Police said the shooter seems to have acted alone and selected his victims at random, but they do not suspect terrorism. The suspect was known to mental health services, police said, and his lawyer said he is willing to undergo a mental health exam.

How often does something like this happen in Denmark? The last mass shooting there happened in 2015 when a gunman opened fire on a café that was hosting a free speech event with a cartoonist known for drawing caricatures of Islam’s Mohammed. Two people died, and police later killed the suspect in a shootout. Denmark does not grant its citizens the right to bear arms. A license is required to purchase a gun for hunting or sport, and individuals may not carry them in public.

Dig deeper: Read my report in The Sift on the 2015 attack in Copenhagen.

Lynde Langdon

Lynde is WORLD’s executive editor for news. She is a graduate of World Journalism Institute, the Missouri School of Journalism, and the University of Missouri–St. Louis. Lynde resides with her family in Wichita, Kan.

@lmlangdon