Sweden shooting horror with three dead as police helicopter hunts suspect

Three people have been killed in a shooting at a hair salon in Vaksala Square in the Swedish city of Uppsala, police have confirmed. A murder investigation is underway.

"I heard five to six shots," a witness who lives nearby told Aftonbladet. The shooter fled the scene on an electric scooter and is still on the run. The man is said to be wearing sunglasses and dark clothing, according to the police description. A police helicopter is circling the scene. Officers have set up large roadblocks in the area, which lies about 37 miles north of the capital, Stockholm.

A "brutal act of violence" has happened, Justice Minister Gunnar Strömmer told Swedish channel, TV4.

"To be honest, you start to get used to it, but it's not pleasant at all," said Henrik Envall, who runs a record store nearby.

Another witness who lives nearby told Aftonbladet that it happened at 5:10pm: "There was a shot and then I heard screams. Then it took about 10 minutes before the police got there. It must have been on the street from what I could see."

Shortly after the incident, train services were stopped to search the trains for the perpetrator, but this has since resumed.

At 7:55pm local time, police announced they had initiated a so-called "special incident". Police spokesperson Magnus Jansson Klarin said: "We are working full-time and have a lot going on now."

The shooting happened on the eve of the Walpurgis spring festival, which brings large crowds onto the streets.

"We see no danger to the public here and now, I want to be careful to emphasize that since many people are out celebrating," Mr Klarin added.

Gun violence linked to organised crime has become a growing concern in Sweden, despite the country having some of the strictest gun laws in Europe. By 2021, gun violence by organised crime had increased tenfold since the early 1990s.

By 2023, gun violence in Sweden had risen to 2.5 times the European average. Most of the violence continued to be attributable to an influx of guns, drug dealing and marginalised immigrant communities.

In February, a 35-year-old man shot and killed 10 students and injured 12 others before committing suicide at Campus Risbergska, an adult education centre in Örebro. According to Swedish prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, it is the deadliest mass shooting in the country's history.