What we know about Michał Oksiński, the gunman behind the Kraków mass shooting

On November 7, Michał Oksiński, a 24-year-old Polish man, carried out a mass shooting that left six people dead and 15 injured in central Kraków. The gunman then killed himself. Police shot and wounded Oksiński before he died at a hospital. Polish authorities have deemed the attack an act of terrorism, but the motive behind the killing spree remains a mystery. Oksiński left no note or manifesto explaining his actions.

Michał Oksiński, who was 24 at the time of the attack, worked as a lathe operator at the Ostrowiec Refractory Materials Plant. He lived in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski, a town about 200 kilometers from Kraków. Oksiński's parents, Janusz and Renata, were both killed, as was his sister, Magdalena. His father, Janusz, held a gun permit, as did Oksiński himself, who had a permit for two firearms: a rifle and a pistol.

Prior to the attack, Oksiński had a history with firearms. He belonged to a shooting club since 2022 and owned two additional firearms at the time of the incident. His father was licensed to own nine other firearms. The bodies of Oksiński's family were found in their beds, with each victim shot twice in the head. Additionally, the family's two cats were also killed by Oksiński.

Theories about Oksiński's motive have emerged, with far-right extremism being one of the leading possibilities. Polish Justice Minister Waldemar Żurek suggested that Oksiński had visited websites devoted to Anders Breivik, that a Gadsden flag was displayed in his home, and that markings found at his workplace pointed to far-right extremism. These findings support the theory first proposed by Poland's Interior Ministry, although it has not been conclusively proven.