Authorities in Austria said they have identified a perpetrator of Monday night’s attacks.
On Tuesday, Interior Minister Karl Nehammer identified Fejzulai Kujtim, 20, as the attacker. Kujtim was from an Austrian town about 30 miles to the West of Vienna, according to CNN.
Around 8 p.m. local time on Monday, shootings broke out across six locations in the city involving suspects armed with rifles. At least five people died in connection with the attacks, and 22 injured, according to the Associated Press. The attacker was “neutralized” after the incident.
During a press conference, Nehammer said Kujtim was arrested in 2019 and sentenced to 22 months in jail. He was convicted of attempting to travel to Syria to join the Islamic State. Kujtim was sentenced to 22 months in prison but was freed just eight months after his sentencing on Dec. 5. As a young adult, Kujtim qualified for conditional release.
“The fact is that the terrorist managed to deceive the judicial system’s deradicalization program” to secure his release, Nehammer said the system should be reevaluated.
Though Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurs said Monday that “several perpetrators appear to still be on the loose,” authorities said Tuesday there was no indication of a second attacker.
A review of the evidence has led police to determine that there is “no indication of a second perpetrator,” Nehammer said. “But because the evaluation is not yet concluded, we cannot yet say conclusively how many perpetrators are responsible for the crime.”
Roughly 1,000 Austrian police were on duty Monday into Tuesday investigating the situation and looking for suspects. Authorities arrested 14 people for questioning after searching 18 properties. It is unclear whether those arrested are still in custody.
Nehammer said Kujtim was armed with a fake explosive vest, an automatic rifle, a handgun, and a machete. Before the attack, the Austrian-North Macedonian dual citizen posted a picture of himself posing with the rifle and machete to social media.
President Trump addressed the apparent terrorist attack late Monday night over Twitter.
“Our prayers are with the people of Vienna after yet another vile act of terrorism in Europe. These evil attacks against innocent people must stop. The U.S. stands with Austria, France, and all of Europe in the fight against terrorists, including radical Islamic terrorists,” Trump said.
French President Emmanuel Macron also shared a message of solidarity with Austrian citizens. “We, the French, share the shock and sadness of the Austrians after an attack in Vienna. After France, it is a friendly country that is under attack. This is our Europe. Our enemies need to know who they are dealing with. We won’t give in to anything,” he wrote in a translated tweet.
