Neighbors Spoke About The Family Of The Attacker From Krakow

• 8.11.2026, 10:44

Michal O. behaved differently than his parents.

Neighbors of the family of Michał O., who opened fire in the center of Kraków, spoke about him and his loved ones.

Renata and Janusz O. lived with their son Michal in an apartment on the top floor of a low-rise apartment building in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski. Their daughter lived in Krakow. According to neighbors, on the day of the tragedy, she had just arrived to visit her parents, the publication Fakt.

Zdisław Szostak, who lived in the neighboring apartment, was friends with the attacker’s parents.

“I was friends with his parents. We lived right next door to each other. We celebrated New Year’s together. They were such cheerful people. Not like him,” he told reporters.

Shostak says he finds it hard to understand what happened: he remembers Michal’s parents as ordinary, very open people.

The mother worked as a cashier at the nearby “Biedronka” store. Neighbors remember her as a woman who was always smiling and friendly.

According to people interviewed by Echa Dnia, she was seen as recently as Friday—she seemed calm and was smiling.

The attacker’s sister was a student at the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków. Neighbors said the young woman was very talented: two years ago, an exhibition of her work was held in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski.

Michał himself, according to Newsweek, was training to be a lathe operator at the local Vocational Education Center.

Sources speaking to Fakt emphasize that the son behaved differently than his parents.

“He’s a little strange. He never spoke. If he did speak—which was rare—he’d just say hello. Otherwise, he’d keep his hood pulled over his head. I’ve never seen him in camouflage,” Shostak said.

Another neighbor added: “The son was the only one who didn’t smile; he was so aloof, so sad. He always wore black.”

At the same time, the building’s residents say they never heard any arguments or noise coming from the family’s apartment. They didn’t hear anything suspicious even when, according to the publication’s report, three people died in the neighboring apartment.

“Absolutely nothing that would have alarmed us,” said one of the neighbors.

Shostak knew that the family kept a lot of guns at home. That didn’t scare him: the father and son were into shooting.

“Well, it was a hobby of theirs. Both of them went to the nearby shooting range every Sunday morning. It didn’t seem dangerous to me,” he said.

Michał’s 52-year-old father had a gun permit. The black Subaru that the attacker drove to downtown Kraków was also registered to his father.

On Saturday, Michal’s neighbor Shostak didn’t see him. He last saw him the day before: according to the neighbor, the young man was quiet, as usual.

However, not all neighbors describe him as strange. Some residents of the building describe him as polite and calm.

“Just a regular guy. He wore a hoodie and said hello. I can’t say anything bad about him,” noted one of them.

On November 7, a 24-year-old man opened fire on passersby in downtown Kraków. Six people were killed, and 16 are reported to have been wounded, including two police officers and the attacker himself.

After the shooting in Kraków police found the bodies of a man and two women in the attacker’s apartment—according to preliminary reports, his parents and sister.

Michał himself was wounded during his arrest and taken to the hospital.