At least 10 people, including two children, were killed and four others wounded in a shooting Wednesday following a bar fight in a town in western Montenegro, with a suspect still at large, officials said.
The police identified the suspect as Aco Martinovic, 45.
In a press conference on Wednesday, Interior Minister Danilo Saranovic said that Martinovic killed the owner of a bar in the town of Cetinje, the bar owner’s children and his family members.
The statement says the armed man fled the scene after opening fire at the bar. “For now, we are focused on arresting him,” said Saranovic.
The police sent special forces to look for the suspect in Cetinje, located 30 kilometers northwest of the capital, Podgorica.
The country is ‘seized by sadness’
President Jakov Milatovic said he was “shocked and stunned” by the tragedy.
“Instead of the joy of the holidays … we are gripped by the sadness of the death of innocent people,” Milatovic said 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 the police teams are out.”
A suspect known for his mysterious behavior: press release
Montenegro, with a population of around 620,000, is known for its gun culture and many people traditionally own weapons.
Wednesday’s shooting was the second in three years of violence 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.
A report by public television station RTCG, which published a photo of Martinovic on its website, said he was known for his eccentric behavior and was once arrested for possession of illegal weapons.
According to the report, the suspect went home to get his gun and returned to the bar and opened fire, killing and injuring many people. The report says that he then went to another place where he killed the bar owner’s children and a woman.
The police urged residents to calm down and stay indoors, to avoid clashes between gangs.
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