Krakow Shooting: Three Bodies Found at Gunman's Home as Interior Minister Cites Far-Right Views

Since a 25-year-old Polish citizen drove through Krakow's Main Square and opened fire around 3 p.m. today, Nov. 7, the story has widened beyond the square. Prime Minister Donald Tusk said late Saturday that three more people were found dead at the suspect's home.

Those bodies, two women and a man, were found in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski, about 150 kilometers (93 miles) northeast of Krakow. Tusk said they were most likely members of the suspect's family. "We have the next acts of this tragedy," he told reporters.

Authorities have not said how the three died or when. Police have not publicly tied the deaths to the suspect beyond Tusk's remarks.

What officials say about the suspect

Interior Minister Marcin Kierwiński said at a news conference that the man holds "very radical" and "ultranationalistic" views. "Everything indicates that he was fascinated by far-right ideologies," he said.

Police have not released the suspect's name. The characterization of his ideology comes from the minister, and investigators have not yet laid out the evidence behind it.

Defense Minister Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz called the attack an "act of terror" on the people of Krakow. Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek wrote on X that the perpetrator would be "held fully accountable and severely punished."

Police spokesperson Katarzyna Cisło said the man appears to have acted alone and that the public is safe.

The toll and the victims

Six people died in the square: four women and two men. At least three of the women were Polish, and one victim was a British citizen. Police were still working to identify the other two.

The number of wounded is reported as 15 in some official accounts and 16 in others. Thirteen people were hospitalized in serious condition, though that figure may include the gunman, who underwent surgery. Two of the injured were treated and released within hours.

Five of the wounded are foreign nationals. A government spokesperson said they came from Britain, Austria, Germany, Portugal and Russia.

Two police officers were hurt. Kierwiński said one was shot three times and was in surgery, and called the officers' conduct "heroic." "Thanks to their heroic actions, the attacker was quickly apprehended," he wrote on X.

How the attack unfolded

Cisło said the attacker wore military-style fatigues and a bulletproof vest and used a military-type long gun. Police found many other weapons and ammunition in his car.

He drove what Cisło called a "wild ride" around the square, firing at several stops. That is why victims were wounded at multiple locations. A tram driver told Krakow's municipal transport company that his cabin window was shattered by shots from a moving car near the square.

He kept firing at police even after being shot, Cisło said.

Mourning and politics

Krakow Mayor Łukasz Gibała declared official city mourning until Wednesday. "The square will belong to us again," he said in a video on X, vowing the city will stay open to visitors. Krakow draws about 15 million visitors a year, most of them through the Main Square.

President Karol Nawrocki said he was "deeply concerned" and offered thoughts to victims and families. Government spokesperson Adam Szłapka said Tusk was on his way to Krakow, and that the event "has shaken all of Poland." National mourning is planned for Sunday and Monday.

The weapons question

How the attacker obtained an automatic weapon has not been disclosed by police or prosecutors. Mass shootings are rare in Poland.

Police statistics cited by Euronews earlier this year show legally owned firearms in Poland passed 1 million for the first time. Poland issued a record 50,700 gun permits in 2025, and active permits nearly doubled between 2015 and 2025. Nothing disclosed so far says the Krakow weapon was legally held, and officials have not tied the attack to those figures.

The open questions are specific: whether the weapon was legal, how he assembled the other arms found in his car, and how and when his three relatives died. Tusk's arrival in Krakow is expected to bring the first full government account of the investigation.