Anger and tears as Montenegrin city commemorates mass shooting victims by Reuters

CETINJE, Montenegro (Reuters) – Thousands of Montenegrins gathered in the city of Cetinje on Sunday to commemorate the 12 victims of a mass shooting last week, with many accusing police of not doing enough to stop the rampage killer

In a crime that shocked the small Balkan nation, 45-year-old Aco Martinovic went on a shooting spree that lasted for hours on Wednesday. When he was finally caught by the police, he turned his gun on himself, and later died of his wounds.

People lit candles on Sunday in front of a church in Cetinje near where the shooting began and stood in silence for 12 minutes in honor of the victims.

“We came here to ask for answers because there was no timely reaction and who will take responsibility for that,” Maja Gardasevic told Reuters.

Many Montenegrins are angry about what they see as slow reform of an under-resourced and under-resourced police force and bureaucratic and political infighting in the government.

It was the second mass shooting in less than three years in Cetinje, which is located about 38 km (24 miles) west of the capital, Podgorica. In August 2022, a gunman killed 10 people, including two children, before being shot.

“This is just my protest against the disorganization of the police. They learned nothing after the first tragedy,” said local resident Aleksandra Jablan.

In the capital on Friday, protesters demanded the resignation of top officials, including Interior Minister Danilo Saranovic and the police chief.

Montenegro, a small Adriatic republic of 633,000 people, has a deep-rooted gun culture.

Like other countries in the Western Balkans – Serbia, Bosnia, Albania, Kosovo and North Macedonia – Montenegro is awash in illegal weapons, mostly from the bloody wars of the 1990s.