Pensioner, 89, arrested after 4 wounded in Athens old-age security office shooting
· Toronto Sun
Police in Greece arrested an aging gunman on Tuesday, after he allegedly opened fire on two separate government buildings in central Athens, wounding at least four people.
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Authorities said the suspect was arrested near the city of Patra, about 210 kilometres west of the Greek capital.
The 89-year-old allegedly entered a social security office and began shooting, leaving one employee wounded.
The gunman fled the scene when police officers arrived at the scene to treat the victim.
Security camera footage from a nearby store showed a man walking calmly across the street while wielding what appeared to be a short-barrelled shotgun in his right hand.
Second shooting
The same man was suspected of later shooting up the ground floor of a court building in another part of the city, where several people were wounded, police said, adding that authorities had found the shotgun.
At least three people were seen being taken by paramedics from the courthouse to waiting ambulances, according to local television footage.
Three female court employees suffered minor wounds from ricocheting shotgun pellets, according to Stratis Dounias, the head of the Athens Judicial Employees Union, while local media said a fourth female employee was taken to hospital without physical injuries after the man was shot inside one of the offices in the court building.
Was there a target?
Alexandros Varveris, head of the National Social Security Fund, said the gunman had gone to the fourth floor of their offices and began shooting, resulting in one person getting struck in the leg — though he did warn one worker to get out of the way.
“He went in, went up to the fourth floor, raised his shotgun, told an employee to duck and hit another one,” Varveris told ERT radio, though he noted to the outlet that the shooter didn’t appear to specifically target the employee he struck.
Varveris added that the gunman was wearing a trench coat that initially concealed his weapon.
The motive for the shootings remains unclear, though state broadcaster ERT reported that after the shooting at the courthouse, the gunman left behind envelopes with documents and the reasons for his actions.
The investigation is ongoing.
—With files from The Associated Press