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2015 Copenhagen shootings

SOLVED2015Copenhagen, Denmark3 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026
Illustrative

On 14–15 February 2015, a gunman carried out two shootings in Copenhagen, Denmark, hours apart, before police shot and killed him early the following morning. One civilian was killed in each attack — a film director at a free-speech seminar, and a volunteer security guard outside the city's Great Synagogue — and five police officers were wounded across the two scenes.

The first shooting took place at about 15:00 on 14 February at Krudttønden, a cultural centre at Østerfælled Torv in Copenhagen's Østerbro district, during a seminar titled "Art, Blasphemy and Freedom of Expression." The event, organized partly around discussion of the previous month's attack on the French satirical weekly Charlie Hebdo, featured Swedish artist Lars Vilks, known for his cartoons of Muhammad, and was opened by French Ambassador François Zimeray. An armed man tried to enter the building through a side door; at 15:33 he was confronted by 55-year-old Danish film director Finn Nørgaard, whom he shot and killed with a single round from a stolen rifle. The gunman then fired at least 27 more rounds into the building, wounding three police officers, before escaping in a hijacked car that was later found abandoned a few kilometres away.

Just after midnight, in the early hours of 15 February, the gunman approached Copenhagen's Great Synagogue on Krystalgade, where about 80 people were attending a bat mitzvah celebration. He fatally shot Dan Uzan, a 37-year-old volunteer security guard, in the head, and wounded two more police officers before fleeing without entering the building. Uzan, the son of a Danish mother and an Israeli father, was an active member of Copenhagen's Jewish community. He was buried at the city's Jewish Western Cemetery on 18 February, with Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt among the mourners.

Police tracked the gunman through CCTV footage to an apartment building in the Nørrebro neighborhood that he had visited between the two attacks and that was already under police surveillance. When officers called out to him early on 15 February, he opened fire, and they shot and killed him at around 04:50 near Nørrebro station; a chief police inspector confirmed he was responsible for both shootings. He had been released from prison on 30 January 2015, roughly two weeks earlier, after serving about a year in connection with a 2013 knife attack; prison officials had reported concerns to Danish intelligence the previous September about his erratic and increasingly religious behavior. In the weeks that followed, four men — 26-year-old Bhostan Hussain, 31-year-old Mahmoud Rabea, 23-year-old Ibrahim Abbas and 20-year-old Liban Salesian Elmi — were charged under Denmark's anti-terrorism legislation over their alleged assistance to the gunman between the two attacks, including helping dispose of the rifle used at Krudttønden and providing him with clothing, a backpack and internet access. Their trial began at Copenhagen Municipal Court in March 2016.

Danish police investigated the shootings as an act of terrorism and a possible assassination attempt targeting Vilks, though they said they did not know the gunman's motive. Jens Madsen of the Danish Security and Intelligence Service resigned in May 2015, shortly before the release of a government report on the police response; the report found that it took about four hours after the first shooting for police protection to reach the synagogue, a delay Justice Minister Mette Frederiksen called unsatisfactory. Danish and international leaders condemned the attacks, and the synagogue's rabbi, Jair Melchior, urged Danish Jews not to leave the country out of fear.

Key facts

Victims
Dan Uzan, Finn Nørgaard
Date
2015
Location
Copenhagen, Denmark
Case status
solved

Case timeline

  1. 2015-01-30

    The gunman is released from prison after serving roughly a year in connection with a 2013 knife attack; prison officials had reported concerns to Danish intelligence the previous September about his erratic and increasingly religious behavior.

  2. 2015-02-14

    A gunman shoots and kills film director Finn Nørgaard and wounds three police officers at a free-speech seminar at the Krudttønden cultural centre in Copenhagen's Østerbro district.

  3. 2015-02-15

    The gunman fatally shoots Dan Uzan, a volunteer security guard, and wounds two more police officers outside Copenhagen's Great Synagogue during a bat mitzvah celebration.

  4. 2015-02-15

    Police shoot and kill the gunman near Nørrebro station after he opens fire on officers; a chief police inspector confirms he was responsible for both shootings.

  5. 2015-02-18

    Dan Uzan is buried at Copenhagen's Jewish Western Cemetery; Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt attends.

  6. 2015-05

    Jens Madsen of the Danish Security and Intelligence Service resigns shortly before release of a government report finding delays in the police response to the shootings.

  7. 2016-03

    Trial begins at Copenhagen Municipal Court against four men charged under Denmark's anti-terrorism legislation over their alleged assistance to the gunman between the two attacks.

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People

  • Bhostan Hussain

    CHARGED

    26-year-old charged under Denmark's anti-terrorism legislation, one of four men alleged to have assisted the gunman between the two attacks. Allegations against the four collectively included helping dispose of the rifle used at Krudttønden, possessing ammunition matching that used at the synagogue, and providing clothing, a backpack and internet access. Trial began at Copenhagen Municipal Court in March 2016; the source material does not report a verdict.

  • Ibrahim Abbas

    CHARGED

    23-year-old charged under Denmark's anti-terrorism legislation, one of four men alleged to have assisted the gunman between the two attacks. Allegations against the four collectively included helping dispose of the rifle used at Krudttønden, possessing ammunition matching that used at the synagogue, and providing clothing, a backpack and internet access. Trial began at Copenhagen Municipal Court in March 2016; the source material does not report a verdict.

  • Liban Salesian Elmi

    CHARGED

    20-year-old charged under Denmark's anti-terrorism legislation, one of four men alleged to have assisted the gunman between the two attacks. Allegations against the four collectively included helping dispose of the rifle used at Krudttønden, possessing ammunition matching that used at the synagogue, and providing clothing, a backpack and internet access. Trial began at Copenhagen Municipal Court in March 2016; the source material does not report a verdict.

  • Jens Madsen

    LAW ENFORCEMENT

    Official of the Danish Security and Intelligence Service who resigned in May 2015, shortly before release of a government report on the police response to the shootings, which found it took about four hours after the first shooting for police protection to reach the synagogue.

  • Dan Uzan

    VICTIM

    37-year-old volunteer security guard at Copenhagen's Great Synagogue, fatally shot in the head while on duty during a bat mitzvah celebration on 15 February 2015; the son of a Danish mother and an Israeli father, he was an active member of the local Jewish community.

  • Mahmoud Rabea

    CHARGED

    31-year-old charged under Denmark's anti-terrorism legislation, one of four men alleged to have assisted the gunman between the two attacks. Allegations against the four collectively included helping dispose of the rifle used at Krudttønden, possessing ammunition matching that used at the synagogue, and providing clothing, a backpack and internet access. Trial began at Copenhagen Municipal Court in March 2016; the source material does not report a verdict.

  • Finn Nørgaard

    VICTIM

    55-year-old Danish film director, fatally shot with a single round while attempting to stop the gunman from entering the Krudttønden cultural centre during the 14 February 2015 seminar "Art, Blasphemy and Freedom of Expression."

Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.

Places

Copenhagen, Denmark

55.7054, 12.5744

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Common questions

What happened to the victim?
On 14–15 February 2015, a gunman shot and killed film director Finn Nørgaard at a free-speech seminar in Copenhagen and, hours later, fatally shot synagogue security volunteer Dan Uzan outside the city's Great Synagogue; five police officers were wounded across the two attacks before police shot and killed the gunman near Nørrebro station.
Where did the shootings happen?
Copenhagen, Denmark.
What is the current status of the case?
Status: solved.
More cases in Denmark

Sources

  1. ENCYCLOPEDIC2015 Copenhagen shootingsWikipedia · 2026-07-12
  2. PRESSContemporaneous coverage — The GuardianThe Guardian · 2026-07-12
  3. PRESSContemporaneous coverage — ReutersReuters · 2026-07-12

Record history

First published
JUL 13, 2026