Copenhagen shopping mall where gunmen killed 3 reopens

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Several hundred shoppers and employees stood for a minute of silence Monday inside the Copenhagen mall where three people were killed when a gunman opened fire.

The huge Field’s shopping center had reopened a couple of hours earlier for the first time since the shooting that rocked Denmark

A 17-year-old girl and a boy of the same age plus a 47-year-old Russian man were killed on July 3, allegedly by a 22-year-old Danish man who apparently selected his victims at random. Neither the victims nor the suspect can be named due to a court order.

Four other people were hospitalized in critical but stable condition after suffering gunshot wounds. In all, around two dozen people were hurt, most in the panicked stampede after gunfire rang out at the mall located on the outskirts of the Danish capital.

“On behalf of Field’s we welcome you back,” a voice said over the shopping mall loudspeaker system in the multi-story mall as the minute of silence ended. The shopping center is one of the Nordic region’s largest and houses more than 130 shops and a cinema, several offices and clinics.

Casper Østergaard, manager of a supermarket inside the mall, told Danish broadcaster DR that “there is a big difference in how employees feel today. Some are fine, others are having a hard time.”

Liza Ibrahim, who works in a dental clinic at Field’s and who wasn’t at work during the shooting, told DR as she entered the mall Monday that “I can feel my heart beating a little faster than usual, and I do not feel very comfortable going in there alone.”

Although the motive is unknown, Danish police have ruled out terrorism. The suspected gunman, who was detained 13 minutes after the shooting began, is in pre-trial custody in a secure mental health facility. He is being held on preliminary charges of murder and attempted murder.

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