Kraków mass shooter dies in hospital; nine killed in Poland's deadliest shooting since WWII

The gunman who killed six people in Kraków's Main Market Square on Saturday died in hospital early Monday, Polish police announced, ending a two-day vigil over a man who had undergone several operations after being shot by officers at the scene. His death brings the total number of people believed killed by him to nine — six in the square and three members of his own family found dead at his home nearly 160 kilometres away.

We are reporting that the perpetrator of the tragic events died in hospital early this morning.— Polish Police

The shooter, a 24-year-old Polish man identified in foreign press reports as Michał Oksiński, had no criminal record and held a valid firearms licence. According to Polish authorities, he drove into the pedestrianised square shortly after 3 p.m. on Saturday — a space normally closed to traffic — and, dressed in a bulletproof vest, military-style helmet and tactical equipment, fired on pedestrians from his moving vehicle.

Among those killed in the square, according to Balkan Insight, were three Polish women aged 47, 53 and 61, a Polish man of about 50, a 32-year-old British citizen and a 51-year-old Austrian woman. The wounded numbered fifteen, among them foreign nationals from Austria, Portugal, Germany, Britain and Russia.

Police responded within minutes. Balkan Insight reports that the first emergency call was logged at 15:00, municipal guards were on the scene within two minutes, and officers had exchanged fire with the attacker by 15:03. Two policemen were wounded in the exchange. Video circulating on social media showed one officer repeatedly shooting the attacker before slowly collapsing to the ground, apparently clutching his right arm.

Senior constable Jakub Kulik and senior constable Artur Moranski are true heroes.— Donald Tusk, Polish Prime Minister

Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek said early Sunday that Senior Constable Jakub Kulik was fighting for his life, with one lung not functioning. By Sunday, officials said both officers had been brought out of comas, though their condition remained serious. Regional official Krzysztof Jan Klęczar said that without their intervention, the death toll could have been significantly higher.

Before driving to Kraków, investigators believe the gunman killed his parents and his 21-year-old sister, Magdalena, at the family home in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski, a town about 160 kilometres from Kraków. According to Balkan Insight, Magdalena was a painting student at Kraków's Academy of Fine Arts who had come home for the weekend. Two family cats were also shot dead. The gunman then drove to Kraków in his father's car, which was later found to contain weapons, ammunition and military equipment.

The question of motive remains unresolved. Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński said at a Saturday press conference that the gunman held very radical views and was fascinated by far-right ideologies. Justice Minister Żurek said the suspect 'acted with the aim of seriously intimidating a large number of people, making this a terrorist offence.' By Sunday, however, prosecutors said searches had turned up no manifesto, no letter and no indication of active membership in any political or ideological group — only 'certain symbols' and unspecified material that investigators declined to describe publicly.

We'll see what the examination of his phone and electronic devices seized from his family home reveals.— Eryk Stasielak, Kraków Prosecutor

Prosecutors had been preparing six murder charges for the Kraków killings, with the number expected to rise to nine if investigators confirmed the gunman's responsibility for his family's deaths, prosecutor Tomasz Waszczuk told ABC News on Sunday.

At his job, the gunman operated a lathe at a local refractory materials plant. He was a member of a shooting club and held a permit for sporting firearms, with two weapons registered in his name. His father was also a licensed gun owner and a sport-shooting enthusiast. According to Balkan Insight, the two men's permits covered a combined total of 11 firearms. Which weapons were used in which attack is a question investigators are still working to answer. The rifle the gunman brought to Kraków was a civilian-model AR-15.

No mass shooting in Poland since World War II has claimed as many lives as this one. Mass shootings are exceptionally rare in the country. A report published in May by Poland's Supreme Audit Office identified serious deficiencies in firearms oversight, noting among other things that holders of sporting, hunting and collecting licences face no requirement for periodic medical or psychological evaluation. Registered firearms in Poland have more than doubled over the past decade, exceeding 400,000 in 2025, according to Balkan Insight.

We have had attempts before, but now we can say that these kinds of attacks have become successful in Poland.— Kacper Rekawek, senior researcher, International Centre for Counterterrorism, The Hague

Poland declared two national days of mourning on Sunday and Monday. In Kraków, St. Mary's Basilica paused its hourly trumpet call overnight — the first time the centuries-old tradition had been interrupted since World War II. Flowers and candles were gathered at makeshift memorials at various points around the city on Sunday, and St. Anne's Church filled with mourners attending a memorial service.

World leaders expressed solidarity. Pope Leo XIV conveyed his sorrow in a message to the archbishop of Kraków. British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said the UK 'deeply mourns the British national and other victims.' Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the shooting a 'crime.' The U.S. State Department said it was not aware of any American citizens harmed.

Part of Main Market Square and surrounding streets reopened Sunday, though police cordons remained in place for forensic work. Specialists in terror offences within the prosecutor's office are heading the investigation, and scrutiny of the gunman's phone and other electronic devices has become a primary line of inquiry.

Why it matters — The attack — Poland's deadliest mass shooting since World War II — has exposed gaps in firearms oversight, raised questions about the spread of far-right lone-actor violence in Europe, and left investigators without a clear motive even after the gunman's death.

Sources differ on Gunman's ideological motive: Interior Minister said he held 'very, very radical' ultranationalistic far-right views and was 'fascinated by far-right ideologies' (nbcnews.com) vs Prosecutors said Sunday that searches found no evidence of active political or extremist involvement; motive remains under investigation (balkaninsight.com)

Reported by nbcnews.com, foxnews.com, abcnews.com, irishtimes.com, balkaninsight.com