A 22-year-old man has been charged with murder in connection with the alleged killings of three individuals at a shopping center in Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark.
In the assault on Sunday, three people—two 17-year-old Danes and one Russian—were slain.
No evidence of a terrorist motive, according to the police, who also stated that the suspect had mental health concerns.
He was armed with a knife and a gun, and his shooting was reportedly random and “not motivated by gender or anything else.”
According to Danish media, the suspect showed up in court wearing a blue T-shirt and was escorted by three heavily armed officers.
While the media were there, the suspect’s attorneys declined to enter a plea on behalf of the accused, and the court ordered that the remainder of the hearing take place in a private room. The suspect and the victims’ names were likewise banned by the judge.
Authorities announced that the suspect would be held for 24 days in a secure mental health facility.
Earlier on Monday, police chief Soeren Thomassen told reporters that they thought the suspect, who was characterised as “an ethnic Dane,” was acting alone and unaided.
The suspect was “peripherally” known to police, he continued.
Police are also looking into footage of a young man brandishing weapons that have been going around on social media since Sunday and which they believe to be real.
The incident left four victims with significant injuries.
A 40-year-old woman and a 19-year-old woman are both citizens of Denmark. A 50-year-old man and a 16-year-old girl from Sweden are the other two.
The chief doctor at one of the hospitals caring for some of the victims said without providing any additional information that one was still in critical condition.
The number of individuals shot has increased to 10 after three more people were struck by stray gunshots, according to police.
Six of the 10 people who were shot were women, and four were men, according to police inspector Dannie Rise. She said, “One of those shot was an Afghani.”
According to police sources, the tragic attack started at Field’s mall on Sunday about 17:35 (15:35 GMT).
One of Denmark’s largest multi-story shopping centres is next to a secondary school and a sizable student housing complex, and it is frequently crowded with young people.
Many of the people present in the mall described how they ran away or hid in restrooms, stores, and storage spaces.
One of them, Isabelle, spoke to the Danish media and said: “We hear gunfire, I believe 10 bullets, and then we run through the mall till we find a restroom. There, we huddle in this small restroom with around 11 other people.
“We wait in the sweltering heat and are really anxious. This whole process has been awful.”
Chef at a restaurant in the mall and another eyewitness, Mikkel Suldrup, told the BBC’s Jessica Parker: “It all became frantic as I was making pizzas one second and a woman hurried in to tell us a man had started shooting the next. People are sobbing and frightened.
“Many people came to our eatery looking for safety. Some of the children we had strayed from their parents. It was quite awful “stated he. “I was, of course, terrified. You had the impression that he might enter our store.”
13 minutes after being informed of the attack, police detained the man close to the mall.
In response to the attack, Mr. Suldrup stated: “I witnessed a dead man being removed. Really, it’s indescribable. It is intolerable.”
You hear about these things occurring in other nations, primarily the USA, but you just don’t think it occurs here.
Fans of Harry Styles applaud Denmark’s response to the incident.
British singer Harry Styles was scheduled to play at a 17,000-capacity arena less than a mile from the mall; thousands had already gathered inside when the event was postponed.
Police took fans, many of whom were in their teens, to subterranean stations where their parents picked them up, according to Danish media.
Concertgoer Jan Muller praised the police’s actions, telling the BBC that “they acted incredibly swiftly, organizing transport for everyone.”
