News

Danish man charged with killing five people with a bow and arrow in Norway

The 37-year-old suspect, whose mother is Danish and father Norwegian, was a resident in Kongsberg, which is just southwest of Oslo. Updates are expected at a news conference at 10:00 on Thursday morning

A 37-year-old Danish man has been arrested and charged in connection with the horrific attack in Kongsberg, just 60 km southwest of the capital Oslo, that left five people dead late yesterday afternoon.

It is believed the perpetrator, who has Danish citizenship but lives in Norway, carried out the attacks using a bow and arrow. Two more people were injured, including an off-duty police officer.

Police are confident the attacker acted below, but unsure whether to classify it as an act of terror.

“I understand that many people are afraid, but it’s important to emphasise that the police are now in control,” the country’s outgoing PM Erna Solberg told media last night. 

Running for their lives
It is believed the attack started inside the Coop Extra supermarket in the west of Kongsberg. It went on for 34 minutes before the police intercepted the man at 18:47 CET.

“I saw people running for their lives. One of them was a woman holding a child by the hand,” a witness told TV2 Norge, who sighted the bowman standing in a corner of the shop with arrows poking out of a quiver.

According to the Norwegian news agency NTB, the attacker had other weapons at his disposal.

Following his arrest, the suspect was taken to a police station in the town of Drammen, where his lawyer, Fredrik Neumann, has confirmed he was questioned for more than three hours last night.

A resident for several years
It is believed the suspect has a Danish mother and Norwegian father.

A local prosecutor, Ann Irén Svane Mathiassen, told TV2 Norge that the man has been a resident in Kongsberg for several years and was known to police. 

A crisis centre has been set up at one of the town’s hotels.

The attack came on the final day of Solberg’s government. A new centre-left coalition takes over today led by Jonas Gahr Store, who has condemned the “gruesome and brutal act”.

Such bow and arrow attacks are rare, although one was depicted in the book and film ‘We Need to Talk About Kevin’. 

More details are expected at a press conference at 10:00 this morning, which will be broadcast live on DR.

TOP STORIES

  • Bestselling author of ‘The Year of Living Danishly’ Helen Russell on why she moved back to the UK after 12 years

    Bestselling author of ‘The Year of Living Danishly’ Helen Russell on why she moved back to the UK after 12 years

    After more than a decade living in Denmark, Russell shares why she made the move, how she’s coping, what she already misses, and the exciting new projects she’s working on. “It’s been a very tough decision. I love Denmark, and it will always hold a special place in my heart,” she says.

  • Denmark launches first AI supercomputer

    Denmark launches first AI supercomputer

    The new Gefion AI supercomputer is one of the world’s fastest and will accelerate research and provide new opportunities in Danish academia and industry.

  • Navigating big love, big moves and big feelings

    Navigating big love, big moves and big feelings

    Experts believe it takes seven years to move into a new culture, according to leading Danish psychologist Jette Simon and therapist Vibeke Hartkorn. For expat couples, the challenges of starting a new life together in Denmark can put pressure on relationships, but emotions-focused therapy can help.

  • More and more Danes are working after retirement age

    More and more Danes are working after retirement age

    Politicians debate a lot these days about when you can retire. The reality shows that an increasing number of Danes like to work, even if they can withdraw from the labor market. Financial incentives help.

  • Environmental activist fears death in prison if extradited to Japan

    Environmental activist fears death in prison if extradited to Japan

    Canadian-born environmental activist Paul Watson has been in prison in Greenland for almost 100 days awaiting an extradition decision for a 14-year-old offence against a Japanese whaling vessel that he calls a “minor misdemeanor”. The 73-year-old had previously passed through Ireland, Switzerland, Monaco, France and the USA without trouble, before Greenlandic police arrested him in July.

  • Denmark too slow to ease recruitment rules for non-EU service workers, say industry associations

    Denmark too slow to ease recruitment rules for non-EU service workers, say industry associations

    When the Danish government in January presented the first of its schemes to make it easier to recruit foreign labour from outside the EU, it was hailed by the healthcare and service sectors as a timely and important policy shift. But while healthcare changes have been forthcoming, the service sector is still struggling, say the directors of the industry association Dansk Industri and one of the country’s largest private employers ISS.

Connect club

Connect Club is your gateway to a vibrant programme of events and an international community in Denmark.

Sign up here

Career

  • Come and join us at Citizens Days!

    Come and join us at Citizens Days!

    On Friday 27 and Saturday 28 of September, The Copenhagen Post will be at International Citizen Days in Øksnehallen on Vesterbro, Copenhagen. Admission is free and thousands of internationals are expected to attend

  • Diversifying the Nordics: How a Nigerian economist became a beacon for inclusivity in Scandinavia

    Diversifying the Nordics: How a Nigerian economist became a beacon for inclusivity in Scandinavia

    Chisom Udeze, the founder of Diversify – a global organization that works at the intersection of inclusion, democracy, freedom, climate sustainability, justice, and belonging – shares how struggling to find a community in Norway motivated her to build a Nordic-wide professional network. We also hear from Dr. Poornima Luthra, Associate Professor at CBS, about how to address bias in the workplace.

  • Lolland Municipality launches support package for accompanying spouses

    Lolland Municipality launches support package for accompanying spouses

    Lolland Municipality, home to Denmark’s largest infrastructure project – the Fehmarnbelt tunnel connection to Germany – has launched a new jobseeker support package for the accompanying partners of international employees in the area. The job-to-partner package offers free tailored sessions on finding a job and starting a personal business.

Want to advertise your job with CPH Post?

Contact us

Jobs