A gunman, who shot on Friday a police officer in the town of Litija, 20 km east of Ljubljana, has been identified as a member of the Slovenian army, police said Saturday.

The 26-year-old man was arrested hours after shooting and fleeing, police said.

While the wounded police officer remain in critical condition, the shooter, injured by the shot officer's partner, is also hospitalized in University Medical Centre Ljubljana.

Details of the incident investigation is expected to be available next Tuesday.

The alleged gunman shot the police officer when a police patrol signaled him to pull over on Friday afternoon. The shooter was wounded when another police officer returned fire, according to eyewitnesses.

The police patrol reportedly was trying to stop the shooter's car in relation to a robbery in Ljubljana on Aug 18.

Slovenia, in general, enjoys good public security. Shooting incident in the tiny Balkan country is rare, let alone attacks on policeman.

However, the year 1997 witnessed a member of the special unit of the Slovenian Armed Forced murdering a police officer on duty at a police station in Kocevje, 60 km south of Ljubljana. The murderer later committed suicide. Endit

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