Shooter in central Moscow had automatic rifle, shot in all directions - eyewitness
Record ID:
1449117
Shooter in central Moscow had automatic rifle, shot in all directions - eyewitness
- Title: Shooter in central Moscow had automatic rifle, shot in all directions - eyewitness
- Date: 19th December 2019
- Summary: MOSCOW, RUSSIA (DECEMBER 19, 2019) (REUTERS) ARMED OFFICER STANDING BY CORDON ON KUZNETSKY MOST STREET AS PEOPLE ARE EVACUATED FROM THE AREA (SOUNDBITE) (Russia) EYEWITNESS, KONSTANTIN, SAYING: "The first thing we saw, first we heard bangs then we saw a policeman lying by the barrier. He was laying there for some time because they were scared of getting there and this person was shooting from behind the first column, you could see him clearly." POLICEMEN STANDING ON KUZNETSKY MOST STREET (SOUNDBITE) (Russia) EYEWITNESS, KONSTANTIN, SAYING: "Policemen began removing the body from the street and loaded it into an ambulance. Then after some time we noticed that they carried out another two people on stretchers from the other side of the Malaya Lyubyanka (street), from Furkasovsky side street. First, one from the police booth then the second from the corner of that building. Then the sappers came." ARMED OFFICER STANDING BY CORDON (SOUNDBITE) (Russia) EYEWITNESS, KONSTANTIN, SAYING: "We didn't see the attacker, we just saw the person shooting from behind the column. (JOURNALIST ASKING OFF CAMERA: What did he look like?) It's hard to say what he looked like because it was quite far away, it's across Malaya Lubyanka (street). It was a person who was always changing the magazines in his rifle and constantly shooting in all directions." PEOPLE BEING EVACUATED ALONG KUZNETSKY MOST STREET (SOUNDBITE) (Russia) EYEWITNESS, KONSTANTIN, SAYING: "Yes he was aiming, his fire was targeted. He aimed and I think that he shouted something. But, unfortunately, we couldn't hear what he was shouting, he cried out, apparently, he was saying something, I wanted to hear it. (JOURNALIST ASKING OFF CAMERA: What was he wearing?) I don't know, it was just some sort of dark siluette" PEOPLE BEING EVACUATED ALONG KUZNETSKY MOST STREET (SOUNDBITE) (Russia) EYEWITNESS, KONSTANTIN, SAYING: "They told us we needed to run along the building because they were disarming something. They brought a thing that they normally put grenades in, a dome." ARMED OFFICER RUNNING OFFICER PICKING UP TAPE
- Embargoed: 2nd January 2020 19:24
- Keywords: FSB FSB HQ Lubyanka Russia Russian federal Security Service shooting shooting in Moscow witness
- Location: MOSCOW, RUSSIA
- City: MOSCOW, RUSSIA
- Country: Russia
- Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace
- Reuters ID: LVA001BAN8BPJ
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:An eyewitness gave a detailed account of the shooting that took place by the headquarters of Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) building in Moscow on Thursday (December 19) and resulted in the death of at least one of its employees.
Konstantin, who declined to give his surname, said he saw a person frequently changing rifle magazines and shooting in all directions in what he described at targeted fire.
The eyewitness added that he saw the body of a policeman laying on the ground for some time as it was too dangerous to retrieve it while the attacker was still at large. He also said he saw two more people being carried away on stretchers from the scene.
The attack happened shortly after President Vladimir Putin had delivered his annual news conference and while he was speaking at a Kremlin event designed to celebrate the work of the security services.
The FSB suspected the attack may have been planned to coincide with Putin's evening speech, a source close to the FSB told Reuters.
The FSB, Russia's domestic security service, said it had "neutralized" the gunman and was working to establish his identity, the Interfax news agency reported. It was not immediately clear what his motive was.
(Production: Gennady Novik, Maria Vasilyeva, Peter Scott) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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