According to Reuters, on May 3, local time, a shooting occurred at an elementary school in Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, resulting in 9 deaths and 7 injuries. The suspect, who was only 13 years old, called the police himself after the shooting. According to local police, the suspect planned the attack a month in advance, wrote down the list of targets, and also went to the shooting range several times.
The Government of Serbia has decided to observe three days of national mourning, starting on 5 May. Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, who called the day of the shooting "the toughest day in Serbia's modern history," suggested lowering Serbia's age of criminal responsibility and further strengthening gun control.
The suspect was carrying two pistols and four Molotov cocktails
According to CNN, on the morning of May 3, local time, a shooting occurred at Vladislav Ribnikar Primary School in the center of Belgrade.
Vladislav Ribnikar Primary School, a well-known local school, was shot shortly after students started classes.
Belgrade Police Chief Milic said the suspect shot the school security guard after entering the school and then entered the history classroom near the entrance to the school and opened fire.
"(The suspect) first shot at the teacher and then started shooting at random." Milan Milosevic, a parent of one of the surviving students, told Serbian N1 television.
Millic said the suspect called the police on his own and was at the school awaiting arrest.
On May 3, 2023, local time, Belgrade, the capital of Serbia, the shooting suspect was taken away by the police. Photo/Visual China
A statement from Serbia's interior ministry said police were informed of the shooting at 8:40 a.m. local time and "all available police patrols were sent to the scene, and police immediately entered the campus and arrested a minor." ”
Milich said police recovered a 9mm pistol, a small-caliber pistol and four Molotov cocktails from the suspect's bag.
Images from the scene showed the suspect being taken away from the school by police in handcuffs, a jacket over his head and a pair of blue skinny jeans.
Serbia's interior ministry said the shooting killed eight students and one security guard, while six others and one teacher were injured. France's Foreign Ministry said those killed included a female student of French nationality. According to N1 television, an injured female student was in danger of life and undergoing surgery in hospital.
According to N1 television, a parent of a student said it was a chaotic morning, and at about 8:50 a.m., he passed by Vladislav Ribnikar Primary School and saw a group of police officers around the school, someone told him that there had been a shooting in the history classroom.
The parent went home to check her daughter's class schedule and found her taking a history class. "I went back to school and saw the security guard lying in a pool of blood, I went through the door and asked everywhere 'What about my child?' He later learned that his daughter was not harmed, he said.
According to AFP, citing parents of the students, school security officers rushed to the suspect and used their bodies to buy time for students and teachers. Local officials also said: "It was the school security guards who stood in front of the gunman and saved the lives of others." Without him, there would have been more victims. A local who knew the security guard told Reuters, "He was a good man, a man who loved children." I don't know what's going on in the head of the kid who shot him. ”
On May 3, 2023, local time, in Belgrade, Serbia, people mourned the victims of the shooting. Photo/Visual China
On the evening of May 3, thousands of people spontaneously gathered near Vladislav Ribnikar Primary School to lay flowers and light candles.
The suspect carries a list of targets for attack
Serbia's interior ministry said the suspect was just 13 years old and a seventh-grader. The suspect planned the shooting a month in advance.
Serbian Interior Minister Bratislav Gasić said the suspect's father was legally in possession of the firearm. "There were several weapons locked in the safe, apparently, the kid knew the safe code and got two guns and three magazines full of bullets."
Serbian police also said the suspect had been to the shooting range with his father more than once.
Millic said the suspect made careful planning for the shooting. "He carries with him a list of the names of the people he wants to kill and the class they are in." Police showed a crumpled piece of paper at a news conference with the suspect's plan for the attack.
According to Reuters, 14-year-old Evgenia said she knew the suspect, "he was a bit reticent, he seemed to be a good person and he had good grades." I didn't know much about him, he wasn't so open to everyone. I never thought this would happen. She said.
Serbian police said the suspect's father and mother had been arrested. Prosecutors said the suspect's father was detained for 48 hours on suspicion of serious endangerment of public safety.
Prosecutors also said a toxicological analysis of the suspect's blood would be conducted to determine whether he was under the influence of alcohol, narcotics or other psychoactive substances at the time of the shooting.
"All the circumstances of this case, including how the suspect got the gun, his motive for committing the crime, are under investigation." The prosecution statement said.
On May 3, 2023, local time, in Belgrade, Serbia, Serbian President Vučić held a press conference on the shooting. Photo/Visual China
Vučić said at a press conference that the suspect is under the age of criminal responsibility in Serbia and will be placed in a special psychiatric hospital. Current Serbian law stipulates that only persons who have reached the age of 14 can be charged criminally.
Vučić said the suspect showed no remorse and police even "suspected that the boy knew he would not be prosecuted."
Vučić suggested lowering the age of criminal responsibility
On the evening of May 3, local time, Vučić delivered a televised speech at the presidential palace to express his condolences to the victims of the shooting that day. "This is the most difficult day in the modern history of the mainland." He said.
Serbian Education Minister Roužić announced that the government has decided to designate May 5-7 as a national day of mourning.
Serbian Health Minister Grujčić tearfully said the shooting was "probably the most horrific experience I have ever had as a doctor and an ordinary person," and said the government would step up its efforts to focus on the mental health of adolescents and children.
Vučić said that "children are more precocious now" and he suggested lowering the age of criminal responsibility in Serbia to 12. However, the Government would also need to consult legal experts and refer to international law when considering the proposal.
According to Reuters, the possession of firearms by Serbian civilians is widespread, and hundreds of thousands of weapons in Serbia are unaccounted for after the civil war in Yugoslavia in the 90s of the last century. However, Serbia's gun control laws are very strict, and school shootings are rare.
According to a 2018 report published by the Swiss research institute Small Arms Survey, Serbia's gun ownership rate of 39.1 guns per 100 inhabitants ranks alongside Montenegro as the country with the third highest rate of gun ownership, behind the United States (120.5 guns per 100 inhabitants) and Yemen (52.8 guns per 100 inhabitants).
Vučić proposed further strengthening gun control in Serbia, including suspending the issuance of new firearms licenses other than hunting use, and revising the way existing gun licenses, shooting ranges, and civilian storage of weapons are regulated. He also said the government would try to have more police around schools.
Beijing News reporter Chen Yikai
Edited by Zhang Lei Proofread by Lijun Li