Shooting at Danish cafe
There were multiple shots fired through the windows of the Krudttoenden cafe at about 4 p.m. Danish time. It was initially believed there were two assailants and though police were able to return fire, both escaped in a dark colored Volkswagen Polo, later found abandoned by police.
Later in the evening police released a surveillance photo of a suspect; it is unclear if they now believe he was the only attacker.
A witness described seeing a man with a weapon who was wearing a hood over his head. There are conflicting reports as to the number of shots fired, ranging from 40 to 200. Dozens of persons were at the event.
Police released a statement saying that the dead person is a 55-year-old male, a Danish civilian. At least one of the three wounded officers was taken away on a stretcher.
The BBC’s Malcolm Brabant reported that police have cordoned off areas around the cafe and are conducting a search. The area, Brabant said, is under lockdown.
Lars Vilks: Police escort
The discussion was entitled “Art, blasphemy and the freedom of expression.” Vilks, who has received numerous death threats in the past, was unharmed. He is the Swedish cartoonist who has offended Muslims with his depictions of the Prophet Mohammed, in particular a 2007 drawing of the Prophet Mohammed as a dog
Two Islamist brothers tried to burn down his home in Sweden in 2010 but failed and were imprisoned. Whenever he speaks in Denmark he is assigned at least one police escort and he was taken away from the shooting scene by Danish police.
French ambassador François Zimeray was an invited speaker at the event and was also unharmed. He posted on his twitter feed from inside the building, writing that he was inside and “still alive.” Another speaker at the event, Niels Lars Larsen, said the experience was “surreal.”
“I heard someone firing with an automatic weapons and someone shouting,” Larsen told Danish TV2 channel. “Police returned the fire and I hid behind the bar. I felt surreal, like in a movie.”
The name of the deceased has not been released.
