Copenhagen — A man shot in a shopping mall in Copenhagen, killing three and injuring several, was imprisoned for 24 days on Monday after being preliminarily questioned in a city court, Danish police said.
A 22-year-old Danish man who fired at a shopper in a shopping street in Fields, a few kilometers south of downtown Copenhagen, was arrested and charged with manslaughter on Sunday afternoon.
He will be detained in a closed psychiatric ward, officials said.
The incident rocked Denmark at the end of the week, hosting the first three stages of the Tour de France cycle race, with hundreds of thousands of cheering Danes gathering on the streets across the country.
The shooter, whose name is banned from publication, shot dead two 17-year-old men and women and a 47-year-old Russian citizen living in Denmark. The other four were also injured by gunshots.
Three of them are now stable and one remains in danger, according to Danish emergency medical service health officials.
The injured included two Swedish citizens, a 50-year-old man and a 16-year-old woman.
The case could not be considered a “terrorist act” based on current evidence, police chief Soren Thomassen told reporters on Monday that there were no signs that the suspect had acted with others. He added.
“Until this horrific case, there was some deliberation and preparation (by the suspect),” Thomassen said at a press conference without giving details of the criminal’s possible motives.
“Our current assessment is that these are random victims.”
Many were slightly injured as they fled the scene, but not due to gunshots.
The attack took place when many young people flocked to the mall on Sunday night, not far from the shopping center, before a concert held by British singer Harry Styles in Copenhagen. The concert has been cancelled.
“I hurt with the people of Copenhagen. I love this city. People are so warm and full of love. I am overwhelmed by the injuries to the victims, their families, and everyone. “It’s done,” Styles wrote on Twitter.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t be with you. Please take care of each other.”
The suspect, who police said was known to a Danish psychiatrist, was in possession of a rifle, ammunition and a knife when he was arrested.
Danish gun control is strict and all weapons except some hunting rifles require a police-issued license. Police said the types of weapons used by the suspect were legal, but the shooters did not have permission to use them.
Nordisk Film, Denmark’s largest cinema operator with a venue in a shopping center in the field, said it had decided to close theaters nationwide on Monday due to shootings.
Copenhagen police will hold another news briefing on the ongoing investigation at 1600 (1500 GMT) local time.
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