Father and Son Killed After Gunman Opens Fire on Hunting Party

A father and son were killed and another man was seriously wounded after a gunman allegedly opened fire on a group of hunters preparing to head into the woods in Norway on Sunday morning.

The deadly shooting unfolded shortly before 7:30 a.m. near Halden, a city in southeastern Norway close to the Swedish border, according to Norwegian authorities.

Police said a hunting party of about 14 people had gathered in a farmyard east of Lake Ørsjøen and was preparing for the day’s hunt. Members were reportedly assigning hunting positions when shots suddenly rang out.

A man in his 70s and his son, who was in his 40s, were shot and killed.

Another man in his 40s was also struck by gunfire and seriously injured. He was rushed by air ambulance to a hospital for treatment.

Authorities initially said the suspected shooter did not appear to be a member of the hunting party. As the investigation developed Sunday, however, police revealed that there was a connection between the suspect and the group.

Norwegian media reported that the suspect had previously been associated with the hunting party.

Police now say their leading theory is that some type of conflict was behind the shooting.

“There is a connection between the perpetrator and the hunting party,” police said in an afternoon update, adding that information obtained during interviews supported investigators’ belief that a dispute may have led to the bloodshed.

Authorities have not publicly explained the nature of the alleged conflict or said exactly why the victims were targeted.

Police said the suspect, described as a man in his late 20s, allegedly used a hunting rifle during the attack.

After the shooting, he reportedly put the weapon down himself.

One or more members of the hunting party then kept the suspect under control until police arrived, according to authorities.

Emergency services were first publicly dispatched to the scene shortly before 8 a.m. Police quickly announced that they had control of a suspected gunman and that they did not believe there was any continuing danger to people in the surrounding area.

Investigators later expanded the allegations against the suspect to include two counts involving murder and attempted murder involving one or more people.

Because the entire hunting group was present when the shooting occurred, police have reportedly classified the other members of the party as victims in the investigation as authorities determine exactly what happened.

The shooting took place in a rural, heavily wooded area outside Halden, roughly 60 miles southeast of Oslo and only a short distance from Norway’s border with Sweden.

The timing of the attack made the scene particularly alarming. The hunters had not yet dispersed into the woods and were still gathered together at the farm when the gunfire began.

Authorities launched a major investigation at the property, with forensic officers examining the scene while detectives interviewed witnesses who were present.

Police said information gathered through those interviews helped strengthen their theory that the attack was linked to an existing conflict rather than a random shooting.

The two men who died were already dead when emergency crews arrived, according to Norwegian reports.

The wounded hunter remained seriously injured following the attack.

The suspect was taken into police custody. Authorities were also expected to conduct a forensic psychiatric evaluation as part of the investigation.

Officials have stressed that they do not believe another attacker was involved and said there was no indication of an ongoing threat to the public.

Halden officials activated the municipality’s crisis response team following the killings to provide assistance to those affected by the tragedy.

The attack sent shock waves through the small community, where hunting is a familiar part of life and the fall hunting season had recently begun.

Investigators are now working to establish the precise sequence of events, the relationship between the accused man and members of the hunting party, and what dispute may have preceded the shooting.

The case remains under active investigation.