Montenegro mourns after gunman kills at least 12 people before shooting himself

Cetinje (Montenegro): Shock and dismay prevailed in Montenegro on Thursday after a gunman fatally shot 12 people, including two children, in a western town before killing himself.

At least four others were wounded in the shooting rampage in Cetinje on Wednesday that followed a bar brawl, officials said. This was the second such incident in the town in the past three years. The shooter, identified as 45-year-old Aco Martinovic, killed the owner of the bar, the bar owner’s children and his own family members, officials have said.

The attacker, who first fled after the rampage, was later located and surrounded by police. He died after shooting himself in the head, Interior Minister Danilo Saranovic said.

Residents of Cetinje, a town of some 17,000 people, were stunned and grief-stricken.

“I knew all of these people personally, also the attacker. I think when he did that, he was out of his mind,” said Vesko Milosevic, a retiree from Cetnje. “What do I know, he went from place to place and killed people. Its a catastrophe.”

Vanja Popovic, whose relatives are among the victims, said that “we are all in shock”.

“How can I feel after this?” Popovic said. “No one expected it. You can’t even ask anyone anything.”

Police had dispatched a special unit to search for the attacker in the town, which is located about 30 kilometers (18 miles) northwest of Podgorica, the capital. All roads in and out of the city were blocked for hours as police swarmed the streets.