The attacker, who went on a rampage and fled, was later found by police and surrounded. “He died after being shot in the head,” Saranović said.
Police dispatched special forces to search for the attackers in the village, about 30 kilometers northwest of the capital, Podgorica. All roads in and around the city were blocked as police rushed to the streets.
Saranović said Martinovic died on the way to hospital in the capital and died from “serious injuries.”
The government declared three days of national mourning starting Thursday, and Prime Minister Milojko Spajic described the shootings as a “horrible tragedy.” “The level of anger and brutality shows that sometimes such people are much more dangerous than members of organized crime syndicates,” Saranovic said. Martinovic had been at the bar with other customers all day when the altercation broke out, Police Chief Lazar Scepanovic said. He said Martinovic went back to the house, got a weapon and opened fire around 5:30 p.m.
He “killed four people” in the bar before heading out, Scepanovic said.
He said the suspect had been sentenced to probation for a 2005 assault and had appealed a recent conviction for unlawful possession of a weapon. Montenegrin media reported that he was known for his erratic and violent behavior.
Montenegro, a small country with a population of about 620,000, is famous for its gun culture, and many people traditionally own weapons.
Wednesday’s shooting was the second shooting in Montenegro’s historic capital, Cetine, in the past three years. In August 2022, an attacker killed 10 people, including two children, before being shot dead by a passerby in Cetinje.
President Yakov Milatovic said he was “shocked and shocked” by the tragedy.
“Instead of the joy of the holidays… we are consumed with sadness over the loss of innocent lives,” Milatovic wrote in a post on X.
