Shooting at Zvezdara cafe: gunman opens fire, then flees

This is a developing story. Details are still emerging, and our newsroom is following the situation. (Updated at 9:35 p.m.: cafe name, number of shots and new circumstances from the scene.)

In the early afternoon, at around 4 p.m., gunshots rang out at the “Parlament” cafe on Bulevar kralja Aleksandra in Belgrade’s Zvezdara district. According to initial information, a masked man entered the venue wearing body armor and a balaclava and fired shots, with witnesses speaking of two rounds, before running outside and fleeing in an unknown direction.

Guests who were in the cafe describe moments of fear and confusion. “It just went off, people started jumping”, one witness recounts, conveying the panic that gripped the enclosed space full of people. Gunfire in broad daylight, on a busy boulevard, at a moment when the venue was packed, further alarmed those present and passers-by.

According to information available so far, no one was injured in the shooting. That circumstance still needs to be officially confirmed by investigators, along with the total number of shots fired and the full details of the attack itself. At this point, it remains unclear what the motive was and whether the attack targeted a specific person or was random gunfire.

How did the attacker get away?

After the shooting, the attacker reportedly ran out of the cafe, got into a white car and drove off toward Cvetkova market. The white vehicle and the suspect are the main focus of the search that followed immediately after the alert.

Heavy police forces were dispatched to the scene at once. Officers sealed off part of the city around the location, carried out a crime-scene examination and tried to track down the vehicle the attacker used to flee. Traffic in the surrounding streets was disrupted while police teams worked to secure the scene and collect the first traces.

The identity of the attacker is not yet known, and no one has been detained or arrested. No one’s guilt has been established, and all the circumstances will be determined by the competent authorities during the investigation. In situations like this, police typically review footage from nearby surveillance cameras, speak with witnesses and gather physical evidence at the scene.

What is known, and what still needs confirming?

In the meantime, a circumstance has emerged that gives the whole case an unexpected twist. Unofficially, police examining the cafe found no traces of blood or physical evidence that would confirm a firearm was used, so investigators, according to media reports, are also weighing the possibility that this was a false report. For now that remains just one line of inquiry and has not been officially confirmed, just as it has not been denied that a shooting took place.

At this point, based on witness accounts, it is known that panic broke out in the venue and that a masked man fled in a white vehicle. Everything else, from the final number of shots and possible targets to whether there is any link to earlier events, still needs to be checked and officially announced.

The relevant prosecutor’s office and police have not yet issued a more detailed statement. Until official information arrives, every detail should be treated with caution, because in the first hours after such incidents the information often changes and is supplemented.

Our newsroom will follow the further course of the investigation and update this report as soon as new and verified information becomes available. Whether the search for the white car and the suspect will quickly yield results remains to be seen in the hours ahead.